Mages, Shinobi and School
by Post-Human Soldier
Summary: Naruto, cursed with a demon by his hero. Negi, saved from his burning village by his. Helping each other is only mutual exploitation. Who will cast off the veil of charades first? On Indefinite Hiatus until further notice
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

AN: Just a slight warning first, if you do not like the idea of Negi being a teenager in a crossover with Naruto, I suggest that you either: A, press the back button now. Or B, give it a try.

Assuming you're still reading this, I will present my reason for doing such a 'blasphemous' act...or something. In almost every other crossover fanfiction between Naruto and Negima, Negi is still a ten year old child. I'm not sure why, but that just irks me. So for this reason I have made Negi a teenager, just to mix things up and stand out from the crowd.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 1: Two different People

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

"A Teacher in Japan." Read the diploma, much to a couple of fifteen year old children's shock and to a woman in her early twenties horror. Pretty soon, all that could be heard around the old academy building was "EH!"

By the time the boy could uncover his ears, his sister and childhood friend had already ran off in search of the Academy Dean. The old man was a renowned wizard known across many countries. And he literally looked the part. With his long beard and long flowing robes, the old man looked like he came out from a fairy tale book.

The boy aged fifteen of average height, ran after his sister and childhood friend. Billowing out from his back was a light tan coat he wore to his graduation, the hood flapping about when ever he took a step. With the hood no longer in the way, his neck length, dark rooted red hair also flowed with the air rushing past him. Underneath the cloak, one could spot a khaki coloured suit with contrasting red tie.

"Nekane, wait up!" cried the boy. He was desperately chasing after his sister after she turned a corner that lead to the Dean's office. The boy breathed a sigh of relief when his sister and childhood friend rushed back around the corner, still at the same breakneck pace as before.

His childhood friend was a fiery red haired girl named Anya. All in all, she wore pretty similar clothing to his. A long dark coloured cloak with a matching witch's hat. Her hair tumbled unceremoniously out from under the hat, ending up in a long wall of fire-red hair. The two ribbons on her head barely separated the cascading hair. For someone who he considered a good friend, he thought that she looked rather pretty.

Unlike most boys of his age, he tried his best to not look at a girl's breasts or elsewhere below the belt. This usually gained him favour with the girls who didn't really want to show their figure. One such girl was Anya. She wasn't particularly proud of how her body developed. This didn't mean she didn't have the curves in the right places. In fact they were all in their right places. This made her more than favourable with the other wizards in training, and also sent her reputation with other girls plummeting. Especially since her best friend was Negi Springfield, son of the 'Thousand Master'.

As soon as Negi entered the academy he was labelled as a prodigy, even if he couldn't really do any magic. But very soon he lived up to his title. Performing nearly every spell flawlessly and getting straight A's in the theoretical tests. When he turned fourteen, the girls suddenly started to swarm him where ever he went. Pretty soon he went into hiding at every lunch break, letting only Anya know where he went. During the trip home, he was constantly assaulted by girls asking him out. Even if he tried to escape by flying, the girls would usually follow on their brooms or staffs and continue the relentless pursuit.

During many of the girl's attempts to ask him out, quite a few of them tried to show off their bodies in an attempt to win him over. Needless to say, these attempts were shot down without mercy. He told them to try and be real witches, for only the ones who are serious about their work should have the right to ask him out. To get the message through, Negi had to tell them several times in ten minutes.

The real danger began on Valentines Day in his final year. After being cornered by several of the girls when the lunch break began, Negi began to panic. In every direction there were girls who held love heart shaped boxes of chocolate, each one desperate to shove one down his throat. Negi had no doubt that they had been mixed with incredibly strong love potion. As a safety precaution, Negi cast a lip-sealing spell on himself, so that no girl could possibly make him eat one. What he didn't expect, was one of the girls to actually launch herself at him. With her lips puckered, Negi thought that it was the end. And much to his horror, the rest of the girls followed suit.

When he arrived home, he immediately took a shower. He figured that an entire stick full of lipstick was on his face by the end. The stuff that dibbled of his face was so thick that he almost mistook it for blood.

Back to chasing his sister through the hallway, Negi shook his thoughts out when his sister finally came across the Dean.

"Headmaster, can't you change his diploma? He is too young to be a teacher, let alone one in Japan!" she pleaded, even her long blonde hair twitching from worry.

"That's true this is absolutely absurd!" Cried Anya, maybe she didn't want to let her best friend go.

"What ever is written in the diploma is final. You must train your hardest to become a great mage." At this Nekane fainted too worried about her little brother leaving so soon. "Don't worry, the principle of the school you shall be assigned to, is a friend of mine. Just do your best, alright?"

Negi hesitated for a moment, but then he smiled and replied with confidence.

"Yes Sir, understood!"

* * *

At this point in time, a teenaged youth named Naruto Uzumaki was sitting on a balcony that was just outside his apartment. His face was one of utter loneliness. The cause of this expression was that it seemed that no one even remotely liked him; sure he had a few friends before. But that was before he brought Sasuke Uchiha back, even if he wasn't alive. His remaining team-mate, Sakura Haruno, had reacted violently to the news. When Naruto tried to comfort her, she openly punched him straight in the face and left. He still had yet to hear from her since.

The pain quickly faded, due to the Nine-tailed fox that resides within him, not by Naruto's choice. It was sealed into him by his greatest hero, The Yondaime Hokage. The one man that Naruto looked up to sealed the horrible beast inside him, depriving him of his one chance at a normal life. As a direct result of the sealing, the villagers despised him. Only a few people didn't, but they usually stayed away from him anyway, afraid of becoming isolated themselves. All through his life Naruto had to stand there, taking in glares, anyone else would have cracked under the pressure and committed suicide.

But Naruto had made it to the age of fifteen, and his clothes now reflected his outlook. His chest was covered in blood stained unzipped coat and a black shirt that had a very faint, flame-like swirl. His pants had similarly colored, faint red swirls that went from the ankle to the knee. These clothes completely contrasted with his sapphire like eyes, they had lost their childish shine after taking down Sasuke.

Almost everyone whose trust he had earned suddenly turned their back on him. He wasn't welcome anywhere anymore, and the glares got all the more hateful. Braver people of the populace even threw stones at him from time to time. Those people were returned with a glare that should have made them burst into flames.

Even the people who had always fostered friendship for him, namely the people who ran the Ichiraku Ramen stand, had turned their backs on him. The single parent and his daughter had packed up shop and moved to another town. Even his former teacher, Iruka Umino, the first person to really accept Naruto for being himself, had refused to have anything to do with him.

The people who had the worst reaction to the news were the civilians; they had sympathized with the Uchiha and his quest for vengeance. But, as far as he knew, nobody sympathized with blonde youth. The only person who still stood up for the poor child was the current Hokage; she even went so far as to invite Naruto to live with her. But he declined; feeling that nothing would change anyway.

Naruto truly believed that nothing would change, but things did. The building he lived in was suddenly abandoned, even by the landlord. The Military council wanted him tried for treason and dishonorably discharged from the Konohagakure Shinobi Force, claiming that he was a 'loose cannon'. Naruto had avoided discharge, barely. The vote was 51% to let him stay.

So here we find Naruto, sitting on the balcony of his abandoned apartment building, just staring over the village as he raises his hand as if to point to something, his lone index finger points at the stone face of the Yondaime Hokage on the Cliffside of Hokage Mountain. Without warning, he suddenly closes his hand into a fist. He muttered something. "It's almost time. I just wished that he'd listened to me." He had been saying that to himself for almost a year now, almost like a confession that no-one took notice of.

When Naruto finally snapped out of his memories, he dove back into a more recent one he had about a conversation with the beast inside him.

[Flash back]

Naruto barely got back from his latest mission. After he opened his door all he saw was a destroyed apartment. Everything of value was taken, the walls and the furniture were vandalised and toppled. The kitchenette was broken and the plumbing was leaking. Naruto sighed; it hadn't changed ever since the retrieval mission. He was about to walk into the bedroom when he was pulled into his mindscape.

In an instant he was before a great steel gate that was locked by a simple paper seal. Forcing his eyes to follow the massive steel bars up, he was soon rewarded by the sight of feral glowing red eyes and a smile full of razor sharp teeth. Naruto looked up at the glowing eyes with a bored expression.

"Whatever it is, I don't care." He dismissed immediately, turning to walk away. Even if it was his mind, it was a place of sorrow for him, where all the memories came flooding back with crystal clarity.

"**Is that so?"** The beast teased through a deep growl. **"I can help you escape your fate."** The intended effect was just as he had hoped; Naruto had frozen still mid-stride, and slowly turned back to face him.

"What would it cost me?" Naruto asked weakly, his fists shaking with pent up rage. The beast chuckled.

"**The thing you hold dearest." **It replied, with a pleased snarl.

"The village…" Naruto breathed, unable to believe what he was hearing. After a few moments of tense silence, he bowed his head and accepted. "But, we do this my way…"

[End Flash back]

Now was about time to leave. Naruto adjusted the last of his things. He let out a smile, remembering the good times he had, then frowned on how they took a turn for the worse. But it quickly reformed into a smile as he thought of how he could make a new life for himself. This didn't last long as the monstrous fox interrupted his thoughts.

"**Hurry up you impudent whelp."** The Kyuubi demanded.

"Just one more thing, then we can go." Replied Naruto, as he stretched his hand over his back. Feeling something metal brush across his hand, he snapped his hand over the object and pulled. With the sound of ripping cloth, he tore off the Hitai-ate that was sown into his jacket. And with a fluid movement, he threw it over to the middle of town. As he watched the glinting metal drift through the air, he whipped out an ordinary kunai and threw it at the discarded headband. The kunai had a single note attached to the pommel. "Now we can go."

Naruto let his arms hang limp with his back pack secured tightly. The Kyuubi initiated the altered space-time jutsu. Naruto could feel something slowly crawling over his skin. He looked down and saw that he was getting covered in a black shroud. He didn't worry how ever. Once the shroud had completely covered him, it started to contract. Until it got to the size of a marble, then it simply vanished.

* * *

At the town square, people were crowding around a discarded Hitai-Ate. One that had a kunai in the metal plate, and held a note attached to the pommel. If one were to read the note they would find a simple message.

'Naruto Uzumaki is gone.'

Then, there was white. In an instant, a village of two-thousand people was gone.

* * *

AN: OK, Chapter 1 of Mages, Shinobi and School, Version 5

God damn I hope all these edits are worth it.

Krimzon-8 out


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 2: Who're they?

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

During inter-dimensional travel, it is quite common for one to lose consciousness. However, losing consciousness was the last thing on the blonde Shinobi's mind as he travelled through the rift. His main concern would be where he would end up. He would find out soon.

The rift was coming to an end; he could feel the pressure around him drop significantly. That wasn't all, when the pressure completely vanished, he saw blue sky. His peripherals began to show blocky shapes as he fell closer to the ground. Before he knew it, Naruto landed with a thud, his vision completely black.

* * *

He was a child again, he could tell from the angle which he needed to look at the adults. Right now, he was in the middle of a busy street. People walked this way and that, pushing each other to get where they needed to be. Each time that they caught sight of Naruto, they scowled and moved further away. Parents with children stayed the furthest away from him.

Each time Naruto tried to get closer to a child, their parents would quickly and quietly move them away. Before he knew it, Naruto was standing far away from the people, every one of them levelling a glare straight at him. The pressure of the glares slowly got to him; pretty soon he had his face in his hands, stopping tears from falling. Before he could cry his eyes out any more, Naruto snapped his head up and look on with fierce determination. His sapphire blue eyes glistening wet from the tears.

"I will become Hokage! Then all of you will respect me!" He shouted as loud as his little lungs allowed. Many in the crowd scoffed at the very idea, while many others simply sneered and walked off. It was then that the image changed.

He was standing in the middle of the arena, facing his opponent, Neji Hyuuga, the so-called genius of his clan. The bastard kept ranting on about fate, and how he was destined to win. He dared to insult his dream, his ideals and worst of all, his past.

The Hyuuga prodigy claimed that he didn't know what it was like to live with a mark that distinguished him from others. This riled him much more than anything before. Naruto thought back to his childhood, how he had to endure the never ending glares.

"Yeah, I know what it's like." He said quietly, but not as quiet as for Neji to not hear him. "So what? Big deal. I got news for you Neji; you're not the only one with a mark that separates you from others. I've lived with that burden for longer than you have, and I'm hated for it, even though I'm doing them a favour." Naruto continued, walking slowly towards Neji. "I've had to stand their glares of pure hatred, the crushing loneliness and even the urge to kill them. With every breath I take, I keep more people alive than they like to think." He continued to get closer, with every step more and more malevolent chakra surrounded him.

Neji was close to breaking point. Panicking, he threw several shuriken at the approaching blonde, only for them to bounce off the charka that continued to swirl around his opponent. He never felt such power before; he was fascinated by it and at the same time frightened by it. His feelings didn't last long however, for pretty soon he was punched in the stomach with such force, that he passed out.

* * *

The blonde Jinchuuriki woke to the view of a sterile white ceiling. Lazily rolling his head from side to side, he could make out some of the room's features. For one, he was lying on a rather comfortable bed. As soon as his vision cleared, Naruto could make out some posters on the wall about human anatomy. With each breath through his nose, the scent of sterile equipment registered in his mind. Straining his neck to look down, he could see that his body was covered by a sheet of thin material. Underneath the material, there was the reassuring weight of his clothes.

As he continued to let his eyes survey the surrounding area, the door suddenly swung open. Standing in the doorway was a woman of roughly mid thirties. Her long, light-blue hair easily reached down to her waist. Naruto couldn't be certain from his angle; her rather large breasts were obscuring the rest of her figure. Covering her eyes were a pair of rectangular spectacles. Her lips were curved into a sincere smile as she saw him awake.

"So, our guest has finally awoken." She spoke. "My name is Shizuna, the school nurse and counsellor. Some of the girls brought you in, said they found you in the middle of the street, completely unconscious."

'Ero-sennin would love you.' Naruto thought as he proceeded to push himself into a sitting position. "Where am I?" He asked in a quiet voice. "All I can remember is hitting the ground, then everything going black."

"You're in Mahora Academy, a Boarding School." Spoke a new voice. Naruto turned his head in the direction of the voice. The speaker was a fairly average man, an unshaven jaw and like Shizuna he wore rectangular glasses. Judging from the wrinkles on his face; he was in his late thirties. To Naruto, that practically made him a senior, since Shinobi and Kunoichi have a very short average life expectancy. After visually inspecting the man, he finally registered the message being conveyed.

"A Boarding School." Naruto muttered 'Of all the places.' The word 'School' brought several memories to surface, the Ninja academy back home, and his teachers. Kakashi and Ero-sennin, the thought of the old pervert made a small smile appear, he was the best teacher he had ever gotten, even if he was a bit of an asshole. After the mission, he appeared and told Naruto that he was proud of him. He could do what Jiraiya couldn't. "What kind of school?" Naruto asked, completely out of the blue.

"It's just like any other school, aside from the fact that there are more than ten thousand students. It ranges from Kindergarten to college level in terms of education. Over one hundred clubs available, that doesn't include the sporting teams. Oh, and that the students are required to live on campus. Does that answer your question?" answered the man.

Naruto did have a little time to actually comprehend the numbers that were mentioned, before slumping back onto the wall, his eyes suddenly tired.

"I guess I should be on my way, sorry to bother you." He said, straightening out and sliding his legs off the bed. Before he made it to the door, Naruto's shoulder was suddenly held in a firm grip.

"I've got a better idea. How about I take you on a brief tour of the school, then we see the Headmaster." The man suggested. Naruto really didn't have anything else to do, so he absently nodded. "I'm Takamichi. T. Takahata, What's yours?"

"Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki."

* * *

Takamichi spent the better half of an hour leading Naruto to the Principle's office. Actually it should have taken much less time, but Naruto stopped to take looks everywhere. In classes, peeking into the library and even staring at the girls who were doing stretches and cheers on the athletics field.

He literally had to drag him by the hair to get Naruto to move on. It wasn't like he was staring in perversion or anything similar, but actually in fascination. It was nothing like the academy back in Konoha. Instead of people throwing kunai knives at each other, people were throwing balls to each other. Instead of running dangerous obstacle courses filled with traps, they were running races against each other. Naruto could go on and on with comparisons, but there wasn't much time. Hell the Shinobi academy didn't have a library at all.

* * *

The time they reached the Principle's office, there was already another meeting going on. Fortunately, it wasn't long before the large doors swung open and four people walked out. Two girls, both roughly aged fourteen and wearing red blazers with red skirts, a fifteen year old boy with dark red hair and a green suit and the woman from the nurse's office.

Takahata and Naruto walked in to the Principle's office, with Naruto practically gaping at the sheer size of the office itself. In the middle of the room sat the Principle himself, who reminded Naruto of Hiruzen Sarutobi or Oji-san, except this Principle put old man Sarutobi to shame. He had very long eyebrows that even Gai would be jealous of, and a beard to match. Extruding from the back of his oddly shaped head was a single ponytail of white hair.

"Hoho, you must be Naruto-kun, if I am not mistaken?" The old man's voice was rather high-pitched for his advanced age. Naruto, not trusting his voice, simply nodded. "Why don't you tell us about yourself then, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto hesitated for a while, before asking something. "Can either of you keep a secret and a promise?" Receiving two nods and words of acknowledgement, he continued. "Then please, promise me that you won't speak of anything I say to anyone else, unless it's necessary of course." The old man placed his hand over his heart and bowed, while Takamichi gave a small speech. Feeling a bit lighter, Naruto began his story.

He told them everything, The Village, Ninja, even about the Tailed Beasts and how his friend died. When he was finished, he felt as though a massive weight had been lifted. After the tale, The Headmaster began thinking deeply. **[AN: got a problem with it? consult the AN at the bottom.]**

"Takamichi-kun, what do you make of his tale?"

"To be honest, it's hard not to believe. After all there are Ninja in the school." Naruto drew a sharp breath at that mention. "But, if what he's saying is true, then he should have the qualifications that are needed for the staff, although he doesn't have the general knowledge that most people his age would. He would benefit greatly if he were to attend a few classes, such as history, grammar and science." Takamichi added as an afterthought. "After he's learned a sufficient amount, I say we give him a job as a security guard against super-natural forces, that is, if he's good enough."

"Interesting, you're suggesting that he attend the school as a student. Takamichi-kun, you may take your leave. You have a class to attend to." Takahata simply nodded and took off. After he left, The Headmaster started talking again. "Now Naruto-kun, you mentioned a type of energy called 'Chakra', I was wondering, could you possible give a demonstration?"

"Uh, ok" Naruto held out his hand and began gathering it and swirling it into a sphere. Pretty soon he had a Rasengan that fitted neatly into his hand.

The Principle gawked, what he was seeing was incredible. An internal Energy that was so powerful that it could actually be seen, the only other energy that could manifest itself was magic, although that was an external force. He was still gaping as the Rasengan dispersed. "Can you do other things with chakra?" he asked gleefully.

Once again Naruto nodded, and preformed a skill known to be a 'Kage-killer' as he formed the seals he smirked. With a poof, Naruto was gone and what stood in his place was a buxom girl with blond pigtails. Said girl simply winked and blew the Principle a kiss, this fortunately had the right effect on the old man. He fainted from blood loss.

With another poof, Naruto repapered and muttered, 'perv'. Seeing as the principle won't wake up for a while, Naruto walked over and swiftly kicked him in the ribs. That got him up.

"Can I have my stuff back yet, old man?" Naruto snarled.

"What? Oh yes of course. They're in that bag over there." He pointed to a duffel bag in the corner with his personal backpack next to it.

"So are you ready to meet your class?" The Principle asked as soon as he finished changing

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"Good, I'll send for Shizuna-sensei; she'll show you the way."

"Thanks" Naruto finished with a bow.

* * *

Shizuna did indeed show him the way to his classroom. She also warned Naruto that the class in question was quite energetic. When they entered, the class was already in a bit of disarray. Two of the students were fighting and the boy that Naruto assumed to be Negi was hopelessly trying to get them to stop. Shizuna stopped the fight, much to Negi's embarrassment, but then she drew attention to Naruto.

"Every one, we have a new member among the students. Allow me to introduce Naruto Uzumaki. Please make him feel welcome; he's come a far way just to attend this school." She announced as Naruto walked into the room.

At first, he was a bit scared by all the stares he was getting. Especially from a red head with two ponytails, she did not seem happy to see him. A lot of the other girls were smiling at him, while a select few had hearts in their eyes and were whispering to each other. Amongst the things they were saying, a few reached Naruto's ears. 'Awesome, first a hottie teacher and now a new guy who's even hotter.' 'I wonder if he works out.' 'Those marks on his cheeks are so cute.'

Swallowing his pride, Naruto stepped forward and extended his hand towards Negi, who took it and shook it firmly. Seeing Naruto's grin, Negi couldn't help but smile as well.

'It might be good to have another person here to help control things. But then again it might backfire.' Negi tired to think positive, but he always found a way to turn them into bad thoughts. It was quickly becoming a habit for him. 'Maybe they'll be nicer to him than they were to me; at least they aren't piling on-' CRASH. 'Never mind.'

Indeed, a good quarter of the class was all over him. They had tackled him to the ground when he was still shaking Negi's hand. First they were asking rapid-fire questions and non-too subtly feeling his body up.

"Where are you from?"

"How old are you?"

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Can I be your girlfriend?"

Poor Naruto didn't catch any of the questions except for the last one, which made his left eye twitch. Luckily, Shizuna came to his rescue by pulling the girls off him. Or, well she tried to. The girls didn't stop clinging to him. 'Get them off, Get them off, Get them off' he repeated the mantra in his head. He couldn't take it much longer, "Get off me!" he shouted, surprising even himself. Then he added as an afterthought, "Uhh, please?"

The girls reluctantly let him go, but they stayed within close proximity to him. That was until, a girl with red hair tied up in a spiky ponytail came up to him. He noticed that she had an armband that read 'School Press', what ever that was.

"Kazumi Asakura, will you please answer a few questions?" she asked with a charming smile. Naruto slowly nodded with a drawn out 'ok'.

"First of all, how old are you?"

"Fifteen years old."

"Where are you from?"

"A place called 'Konoha', it's pretty far away and not on the maps."

"Ok, now all the boring stuff is out of the way, I can start asking the questions we really want to know. Do you have a girlfriend?" a shake of the head form Naruto. "Ok then, last one. Which girl here do you think is the cutest?" This question shocked both quite a few of the other girls and Naruto himself.

"Do I seriously have to answer that?" his question was met by a loud 'Yes' from all the girls. With that unanimous answer, he took a quick scan over the girls. There was one or two that caught his eye. One being a relatively tall blonde, another was a particularly average girl with her strawberry blonde hair in tied into a couple of buns and two tiny ponytails. His eyes darted between the two, unable to decide. Without really thinking any further, he suddenly pointed to the strawberry blonde girl.

"Her." He stated, feeling a little stupid. The girl that he was pointing to, quickly turned beet red and looked down, not wanting to face her friends. Kazumi simply took out a notepad and scribbled something down, before nodding and returning to her seat.

Shizuna told the others to return to their seats as well, and they did so with a dejected sigh. She then took Naruto and left the class in Negi's care.

Negi started out. "Ok, since I'm going to be with you guys for a while, I might as well get to know you. I will answer any question you throw at me." After he finished, three thirds of the hands went up. He sighed, 'This will be a long day.' He thought.

* * *

AN: Chapter 2 of MSS.3

Reason for re-write... just thought that I should. One recent review got me thinking on how far I can actually take this with Naruto being a teacher.

Recently, i've been getting some flak for this chapter. Apparently for the 'He told them everything' line. People who think that Naruto is being a weak minded idiot, are in fact idiots themselves. Naruto hasn't had a very sheltered life, it isn't hard for him to trust people and thus he opens up to them. It's relatively easier to tell something to a complete stranger, that would be quite hard to say to a friend. Most people dont realise that Naruto's current situation is very similar.

Tune in next time for Mages, Shinobi and School! (Really anyone got a better name? please? I'm open for suggestions)

Krimzon-8 out


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 3: A rescue, A secret and A party

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

For most of the day Negi and Naruto had to answer every question thrown at them. While most of these questions were along the lines of 'Will you go out with me?' for Negi and 'Want to join the rugby club?' for Naruto. The blonde didn't really have a way of stopping himself from burying his face into his palm. While they did answer the more tame questions, such as to describe their hometowns (Naruto had to make it up on the fly) and their qualifications or experiences. Negi responded by telling them he had a Master's Degree in Education, while Naruto just stated that they wouldn't find it interesting.

The school day ended and the two teenagers made their way out of their respective classrooms. They met up with each other in the courtyard outside the main building. Negi thought that he'd rather talk to someone his age, and it just so happens that Naruto was also his age and new to the place.

"So, how did you end being a teacher?" Naruto asked, rather curious as to why they let someone his age teach a bunch of schoolgirls that were barely younger than them.

"Oh, well it's rather embarrassing. You see I passed school ahead of people my own age, pretty soon I entered college stayed for a few years and acquired my Degree in Education. Since then I was referred to here. I actually learned Japanese in about a week." It sounded like he rehearsed it or something. "What about you? How did you end up here?"

"I travel a lot, my parents died leaving me with quite a bit of wealth, so I just had the misfortune of winding up here when most of my funds diminished." He wasn't entirely lying. "Before you ask, I was travelling since I was twelve. "

"I see, did the Head master give you anywhere to live?"

Naruto recalled the talk he had with the Principle, and shook his head.

"No, he didn't."

To his surprise, Negi started laughing.

"Ha ha, oh man." He wiped a few tears away. "That's funny, because he didn't give me any either!"

Naruto found nothing funny about the situation he and his friend were in. They had no place to sleep, how is that a funny thing?

"I don't get it, what's so funny?"

"It was just the coincidence." Negi stated, now down to a mild chuckle, but soon stopped due to his stomach growling rather loudly. "Eh Heh, you don't happen to have any food do you?" he asked with a nervous laugh.

Naruto responded with covering his face with his palm. He didn't bring any food either.

"Well we'll just have to wait it out. Besides I heard some girls planning for a party of sorts." Naruto stated, considering his options.

"Party?" Negi asked with a blink. "Oh, speaking of the girls, I better start memorising their names." With that he pulled out a folder from his satchel bag. He began walking towards a statue in the middle of the courtyard.

Naruto was trying to see what Negi was reading as they sat down. Sighing, Naruto just plopped himself down. He then looked over Negi's shoulder, curiosity taking over. His eyes scanned the pictures of the girls, but he lingered on some more than others. The first was Kazumi Asakura, the one who questioned him and asked him out right in front of the class. He stopped at Chachamaru Karakuri and noted the weird antenna-like objects that should have been where her ears were. Another one was Sakurako Shiina, the only one of the girls who was actually grinning and incidentally, the one who he picked as the cutest of the class. The last was Kaede Nagase, nothing seemed special about her. It was the note under name that caught his attention, 'Ninja'. Naruto shook his head and read again, only to confirm what he saw.

'Ninja's here? I hope they don't know anything of Konoha. But then again it maybe just that she dresses like a ninja and attempts to act like one. At least I hope she does.' Naruto thought worriedly.

Negi on the other hand was reading each of the names out, attempting to memorise them. He got to Nodoka Miyazaki, and read her activities out as he lowered the folder down, only to sight Nodoka herself walking with a large amount of books in her arms. Naruto also looked up and saw her. But for the moment he snatched the folder Negi was reading.

Nodoka was delivering books to the library, when she came to part she hated the most. The stairs. She couldn't really see in front of her due to the books and her dark hair in her face, so she hoped that she was close to the middle. However this was not the case, in fact she was rather far off to the side, almost at the edge. She carefully took one step at a time. But as she took her fourth step down, she slipped. Trying to balance her self out by placing her other foot behind the other one proved to be a mistake. The foot fell on nothing and she tumbled over the side, letting out a scream of pure terror as she fell.

Negi saw her fall and quickly scooped up his staff and ran towards her. With how fast he was going now he wouldn't make it, he quickly pointed his staff to where she would land and muttered a spell. Luckily, Nodoka stopped right before the ground, giving him just enough time to sprint as fast as he could and catch her. Unfortunately, he overestimated how face he would have to jump, so his face ended up in her chest. This was the least of his concerns; he had to see if she was alright.

"Miyazaki-san, are you alright?" he asked the still dazed girl as he brought her up into his crouched lap. Letting his eyes drift, he soon spotted another pair of feet. His gaze wondered up and into the eyes of one Asuna Kagurazaka. The wind blew her red twin ponytails about behind her, the bells she used to tie them up tinkling slightly. She simply gazed at him with shock apparent on her face. Negi tried to look past her and noticed that his pack was completely left unattended, with Naruto no where to be seen. 'Uzumaki, you traitor!' He made a mental note to hurt that guy when he next saw him.

"Y-you," Asuna struggled out from her shock.

"Uh, y-you saw?" Negi asked her, his voice barely above a whisper. He never really got a reply because Nodoka was stirring.

"S-sensei?" Now it was Negi's turn to not reply. Asuna sprung into action, taking him by the collar and pulling him towards the nearby tree line with frightening speed. With the shock, Negi barely had time to grab his staff off the ground.

As soon as they were a good distance off the path, Asuna slammed Negi into the nearest tree and held him there.

"Alright spill it! You're some kind of super-person aren't you?" She demanded.

"No, you're mistaken-" He feebly tried to deny it.

"Don't try to fool me! I saw you! I caught you red-handed! Confess! You're some kind of superhero, aren't you!"

"I-I'm a mage." Negi responded meekly.

"What ever! It's the same thing isn't it? Ah!" Her mind recalled the first time she met him. "This morning's incident… It was all your handiwork too, wasn't it!" She was referring to how her panties got shown to Takahata, who is apparently her crush. Negi's feeble attempt at an apology and plea for her to not reveal his secret was quickly shot down with a simple, "I think not!"

"I guess I have no choice then." Negi stated with a cool and collect voice, barely registering Asuna's 'Eh?'

"I'm going to have to erase your memory!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in an area both Negi and Asuna previously occupied.

Nodoka looked down, she was saved by Negi-sensei, but she didn't get the chance to thank him, for Asuna took him away. Sighing dejectedly, she began to collect the books, only for her to see someone else doing it for her. Said person had already collected and piled the books up. The first thing she saw was his blood-coloured jacket with the hood flapping in the wind, letting their spiky blond hair out.

He suddenly turned around to face her and spoke. "Looks like you could use some help."

It was for that moment that he actually saw her. The poor girl had her hair covering her face, but even so, she looked just like Her_._ The differences were subtle but there was definitely a resemblance. The hair colour and style were so similar; he thought he was seeing a ghost.

"H-Hinata?" He muttered. Causing the girl to look up, revealing her purple eyes, definitely not Hyuuga white as he feared.

"S-sorry, thank you for picking up the books," she said in a quiet voice. At least she wasn't fiddling with her fingers. She hesitantly took the books from the shocked Naruto and continued on her way, leaving him there, still as a statue.

* * *

"I'm going to have to erase your memory!" Negi said threateningly, holding his staff in a dramatic pose. "It might leave you a bit empty-headed, but I can't allow you to tell anyone!"

Unfortunately Asuna's pleas fell on deaf ears.

"_Vanish!"_

Slowly, but surely something that Negi didn't want to happen, happened. Asuna's clothes excluding her blazer were ripped to shreds and thrown to the wind. This pretty much left her naked.

"Oops, looks like I got it slightly wrong." Negi claimed, scratching the back of his head.

"Hey! What are you two up to?" Spoke a voice that was growing louder along with the sound of footsteps on grass. Pretty soon Takamichi walked around a tree, cigarette in his mouth. Said cigarette promptly fell out of his mouth when he saw Asuna. With nothing else to do, she did what any girl in her position would do. She screamed her head off in embarrassment.

* * *

After much wallowing in the grounds on Asuna's part, she tried to get Negi to help her in whatever way he could. This basically meant asking him if he could make a love potion, which was a negative. Then she asked for a Money Tree, yet again negative. He was sorry, for all he could do was about a dozen offensive spells, apart from that he could read minds, which just the mention of such a thing made Asuna jump for joy. She could find out how Takahata felt about her.

It was about this time that she and Negi ran into a certain blonde staring into space, his body as still as a statue. Remembering his own promise from earlier, Negi promptly walked up to him and hit his face with a right hook. Naruto didn't even make a move to stop it; he just stood there and took it. He didn't even fall down, indeed he didn't show any sign that he'd been hit at all, other than the bruise that was slowly forming on his cheek.

Stunned at his fellow's lack of reaction to injury, Negi waved his hand in front of him, trying to get a response from him.

"Naruto," he tried using his name, which seemed to shake him out of it. Naruto brought a hand up to his cheek and rubbed the spot where he'd been punched. It stung but not badly. "Come on, we gotta get going." Negi said clapping a hand on his shoulder with a smile.

Naruto only let out a quiet, "yeah", before proceeding to follow Negi and Asuna back up to the school building. The further they walked, the more he gained his smile back.

When they came to the classroom, Asuna said she would just get her stuff and they would get going. But when she opened the door, there was a series of loud 'pop's which came from party poppers. Confetti rained down upon the door and people cheered. Hanging from the ceiling was a banner that said 'Welcome Negi-sensei and Naruto-senpai!' to both their shocks. As they were reading it, the class room cheered the very words that were on the banner. Taking advantage of their stunned silence, the girls got behind Negi and Naruto and pushed them to the guests of honour seats. Where the various girls offered them all kinds of food and drink, most of which Naruto took. During the exchange of foods, Nodoka Miyazaki came up to Negi.

"Um, Negi-sensei about that incident earlier, you saved me, um, please accept this book certificate as a token of my gratitude." She thrust out a small ticket as she spoke, head facing down to hide her blush. Many of the girls accused her of going to the teacher already. As if to show up Nodoka, the Class Representative, a rather average girl with impressive curves and long blonde hair, stood up and presented Negi with a bronze bust of him.

"What the heck is that!" shouted Asuna. Much to the shock of others Naruto also stood up.

"Yeah, Where's mine!" he shouted right after Asuna. Many of the girls threw accusing glares at the class rep, who simply stuck her tongue out at Naruto. Yet again, Asuna started to fight with the Class Rep. And again much to everyone's shock, Naruto tried to throw himself into the fray, but many of the girls held him back. Negi considered going in to pull Naruto out of trouble, but he shrugged and turned around, only to be confronted by Takamichi and Shizuna.

"Ah, Takamichi and Shizuna-sensei, I didn't realise you two were here." He greeted them happily.

Naturally, Asuna heard 'Takamichi' and immediately broke off contact with the Class Rep, which turned her attention to Naruto in a battle of the blondes.

Asuna simply dragged Negi off and told him to get it over with. Meanwhile back with Naruto and the Class Rep.

"What's, so special about Negi anyway?" he questioned in a rather angry tone towards the Class Rep.

"For one, he's smarter and cuter than you! You have nothing on Negi-sensei!"

"How would you know that? You barely met us this morning!"

"That was more than enough time to prove it! You're just like Asuna, a dumb monkey head who's only good at sports!"

"You take that back you blonde banshee!"

"Fish cake!"

"Goldie-locks!"

Shizuna was watching the entire exchange with interest. She whispered to Takamichi, "My, they're getting along pretty well, almost like they were siblings." Takamichi merely chuckled and nodded. It was about then that Negi came up to him, placed his hand on the older man's forehead and asked.

"What do you think about Asuna?" Behind him, the girl in question literally fell down from the lack of tact that Negi displayed.

"Well, she works hard at her part-time job every morning, she's always alert, and she's bright and cheerful… I think she's a nice girl." Negi simply nodded and, not really being discreet, scurried back to Asuna.

"He was thinking 'No panties'." He relayed. Asuna fell down again.

"B-before, go ask him what he thought about me before that!" she whispered her commands to him. And sure enough, a few seconds later.

"He was thinking 'bear panties'." After that last thought-relaying, Asuna sighed in defeat and walked out the door. Negi, feeling responsible, followed. "W-wait! Asuna-san!"

"Just stop following me! This has nothing to do with you!" she said storming down the stairs.

"Look, I'm your teacher from here on out. I'd do anything to help a student in need."

"I told you its fine; it is unrequited love, after all." She said with a sniff.

"Ah, magic is no good here. Ojii-san always said 'Our magic is not omnipotent. A little bit of courage is the true magic'." That sentence seemed to bring a smile to her face. She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them up again.

"I understand, I'll try to show a little courage too." As soon as she said that and just as Negi was about to respond, she turned around and said "so, before that. Let me practice confessing." Not even bothering to acknowledge Negi's 'eh?' she continued. "I can't confess to him without practicing can I?" Negi could only blink at to what she implied.

"Ok, you're Takahata-sensei from now on ok?" she asked, as she climbed the stairs to his level, to which Negi responded with a confused 'o-ok'.

Without warning, Asuna started taking off the bells that held her hair fiery hair in ponytails. The effect was profound on Negi, 'She looks just like Onee-chan.'

"I love you. I love you, sensei. I've loved you for such a long time…is that troublesome for you?" Negi knew it was just a practice, but that didn't stop him from blushing.

"I guess it would never work between someone like you and I." She said dejectedly as she turned around, showing her back to him.

"D-Don't say that!" Negi said as he grabbed her shoulder to spin her back around. As he tried to turn her back around, his foot slipped on the step, causing him to slide onto the steps, inadvertently catching Asuna along with him, who landed on his chest. As though like nothing even happened, she cupped Negi's cheeks with her hands and drew closer.

"Is it alright if we continue?" she whispered in a husky voice. "Close your eyes."

To Negi it was futile to try and resist, so he obeyed. He could feel her hot breath brushing against his face. Then he felt something soft brush against his own quivering lips. As fast as the feeling appeared, it vanished along with the tickling breath. Negi took this as a sign to open his eyes. As he did, the face of Asuna smiled back at him. At Negi's face, she burst out laughing.

"Hahaha…That was priceless…You looked so nervous…And your face…Was all red!" she struggled out from her roar of laughter.

Her laughs were cut short as several flashes went off in rapid succession from the top of the stairs. At the top, holding his sides in a laughing fit, was non-other than Naruto Uzumaki holding a camera. Directly behind him were the Class Rep and Kazumi Asakura and a few others. The Class Rep was half-heartedly pointing a shaking finger at Asuna. Kazumi was grinning wider than the Cheshire cat himself, all the while trying to get her camera back off Naruto. The others had looks of shock and giddiness about them.

It was about then that Negi finally realised the way they were positioned. His legs were straight out while Asuna straddled his hips, her arms were holding onto his shoulders, with their faces too close together for conventional comfort.

"A-Asuna-san, you-" stammered the Class Rep, and faster than most anything she was holding Asuna up by her collar and yelling into face. "W-w-w-what do you think you were doing! Leading him out here so you could take advantage of him!"

"N-no you mist-" Asuna was cut off by an enraged Class Representative.

"What am I mistaken about! I didn't think you would stoop to doing something like this!"

"Hey sensei, a little help please?" Asuna managed to croak out.

Negi, not knowing what he could possibly do, pulled his staff out of nowhere and shouted _"Memories Vanish!"_ To say the least, he was incredibly embarrassed, with Naruto almost fainting from a lack of blood.

* * *

"This is entirely your fault!" Asuna scolded Negi as they walked down the street in the night, alongside everyone else. Naruto was the one to respond.

"You reap what you sow." He stated it like it was fact.

"What was that?" She asked in a deathly tone.

"Ahh nothing, nothing at all."

"Hey, have you two decided where you're going to stay yet?" she suddenly asked, all anger gone from her voice.

Naruto and Negi simply looked at each other, and as if on cue, they both face-palmed.

"Well, we can have one more person in our room, can't we Konoka?" Asuna asked the girl with the long chestnut hair in front of her.

"Yeah, there's only enough room for one more." She replied, a bit guilty.

Negi was about to let Naruto have it, but yet again he was beaten to the punch.

"You have it Negi; I'm used to sleeping outside." He said with a lopsided grin.

"Doesn't Ayaka have some spare room?" asked Konoka, desperate to find somewhere for Naruto to sleep.

"The Blonde Banshee? No thanks."

"What about Kazumi or Kaede?" she offered.

"Not sure about Kaede, Kazumi's nice, but I'd rather keep my privacy and not have pictures of me naked in the school newspaper." As said it, Konoka got a little blush.

"Sakurako?" she suggested with a sly edge to her voice.

"She's that cheerleader isn't she?" A nod from Asuna, Konoka and Negi, who had been writing something in the class roster. "Yeah, why not?"

"Give me a second." Said Konoka, who started using a little blocky device the size of her hand. "Hello? Sakurako, it's me Konoka. Naruto-senpai's wondering if he could stay in your place for a while."

"_Seriously! Of course he can!"_ was the response, Naruto could easily hear it. _"I'll be waiting outside the dorms!"_

"She'd be happy to let you stay." Said Konoka after placing the phone in her pocket.

"I heard, let's just get...going." Naruto replied with a yawn.

The remaining walk to the dorms was quiet, except for the repeating footsteps that seemed to echo off the street walls. All in all it didn't take that long to get to the dormitories. The dormitories themselves seemed about half the size of the school building. There were only two buildings that could compare to the size of this one back in Konoha, The Hokage Tower and the Hospital.

Sure enough, standing out the front of the building, waving at the four people approaching was Sakurako Shiina. Over all she seemed pretty normal, the only things that distinguished her was her strawberry-blonde hair that was tied up into two loose buns and two small platted ponytails that hung behind her neck.

As he got closer, she started calling out to him.

"Naruto-senpai! Over here!" For his part, Naruto just rolled his eyes with a smile plastered on.

"I'm not blind or deaf!" he shouted back, causing her to blush.

He followed her indoors and waved good bye to Negi as they passed the room he now shares with Konoka and Asuna. Naruto's on the other hand was at the end of the hallway. When they came to it, Sakurako threw the door open and welcomed him inside.

Set around the small room was a bunk bed and a window. In one corner there was a kitchenette and in the other a television. In one of the walls, there was a single door that he assumed led to the bathroom. Nothing anyone from Konoha could say would convince him to go back now. It was so much better than his old apartment, much bigger too.

"Senpai, I've got the top bunk so you get the bottom one." She said as she grinned at him.

"You're not planning on doing anything perverted are you? He deadpanned, Sakurako visible flinched.

'Damn it, he found out my plan!' she mentally cursed herself.

"What ever, I'm going to bed, see you…tomorrow." He said wile yawning to get his point across.

He didn't even bother to take his current clothes off as he climbed into bed, for as soon as his head hit the pillow, he was fast asleep.

* * *

AN: Wow, ok I over shot my goal this time by at least 500 words. Oh well, all the better, more material I guess.

Don't flame me for Sakurako's hair colour I seriously have no idea what colour it is. In the Anime it was red, but then in the next season it was blonde. I take a look at it in the manga but I can't find a picture of her. So I pretty much settled on a combination of both.

I know, not much Naruto at all in this chapter compared to Negi, but at least there are some bits of him. I tried to make it as humorous as I could, but I'm not a particularly funny guy.

Until next time look forward to the next Mages, Shinobi and School!

Krimzon-8 out.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 4:

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

The following morning, Naruto woke up to a rather annoying beeping sound. Sure he never really had an alarm clock before, but he assumed that this must be what it's like to have one. After a few good moments of annoying beeping invading his brain, his roommate decided to jump out of her bed and shut the infernal thing off. She then proceeded to take a shower, tie up her hair and get dressed. Naruto meanwhile simply jumped off the bed and looked in the fridge for anything he could eat for breakfast.

Ultimately he came up with nothing, and just settled for milk. Although he forgot that he wasn't in his old apartment anymore. He grabbed it and drank straight from the carton. At the same time, his roommate came out of the shower all dressed and ready for the school day. Just as she was about to head out, she caught Naruto drinking straight from the carton. She promptly stormed over and snatched it out of his hands, thus reminding him that someone else lived there. Naruto simply blinked at her, looked around and blinked some more.

"Oh, right I forgot." He muttered.

"Come on, Naruto-senpai, we have to get to class." Sakurako stated firmly. "Just because you're new doesn't mean you can skip class."

"Fine, fine." Naruto groaned as he rubbed his eyes. "Give me five minutes and I'll be ready."

"Fine, just hurry it up, I don't wanna be late."

Naruto changed in record time. Within three minutes he was out and running along side Sakurako, who seemed to be having a tough time with running. For Naruto, it was like a morning jog. Seeing as Sakurako was breathing heavily to keep up, he did the best thing he could think of. He swung his left arm under her knees and caught her shoulders as she fell. He carried her the entire way to the school, all the while she was as red as a tomato, and most girls that saw her sent jealous glares her way.

As they arrived at the front door, he placed her down softly and continued inside, only to get quickly lost. Sakurako simply shook her head and told him to follow her. The two were earlier than most of their class. Even as Sakurako took her seat, she still blushed at the memory of Naruto carrying her to school. Taking a cursory glance at the boy in question, she saw that he wasn't even winded.

More and more of the girls continued to trickle into the classroom, but when Negi finally came with Asuna and Konoka, Naruto gave a simple wave as a greeting and left for his homeroom. Negi was a bit shocked that Naruto got there before he did. Yet he was shocked to see him in school uniform, while he was in his green suit with red tie. Negi just took his place at the podium while Naruto shut the door.

The usual formalities went by, the standing, bowing and greetings. As roll call came, Negi pulled it off. All he had to do was read their names out, listen for their response and mark them as either absent or present. Negi was sure that he would screw it up in one way or another, but he pulled it off flawlessly.

And so the lesson continued. Negi read passages out from a book, while pacing about the class. Most of the classes' attention was on him, but a few still let their gazes wonder about. So when it came time for someone to translate the passage, Negi naturally chose Asuna.

Asuna protested against reading out, claiming that Negi was deliberately picking on her. The teenager desperately tried to justify his decision, first by stating that she was in the 'A' section on the roll, which was false. The yelling between the two red-heads was stopped by Naruto's arch rival, the Class Rep, or Iincho as was the proper term in Japan. Asuna admitted defeat and began to translate the passage from English to Japanese. The end result was completely laughable, the entire class thought so.

The victim, being Asuna, tried to threaten Negi to never do it again. As she was threatening, her hair brushed against his nose, causing him to sneeze. What happened next was something that no one could have expected, not one bit. Asuna's clothes flew straight off her body, as well as causing a large gust of wind to blow through the classroom. Asuna sent Negi a death-glare, for the infernal act.

Across the school, in a completely different room, Naruto felt a reasonably large wave of killer intent wash over him. It wasn't the largest he'd felt, but it was still pretty noticeable, well to him anyway.

* * *

Negi felt miserable for the rest of the class. Asuna kept glaring at him. He really didn't want to antagonise her, like Naruto did with Iincho. After the bell sounded, he found himself trudging to the statue in the courtyard; Naruto didn't come with him since he was visiting Sakurako back at the classroom. He was in the middle of trying to think of ways to repair his friendship with Asuna when three of his students came up to him. He tried recalling their names, the taller one with glasses, and long brown hair was Haruna Kiotome, The shortest one with blue hair was Yue Ayase. The last member of the trio was non-other than Nodoka Miyazaki. He could tell from the previous day that she had changed her hair slightly, it let her eyes show.

"Ah, yes what can I do for you girls?" he asked politely.

"Nodoka has some questions about the lesson today." Haruna replied pushing Nodoka forward. Nodoka seemed extremely nervous, but he couldn't really place why.

"You changed your hairstyle didn't you Miyazaki-san, it suits you." He was trying to sound nice, but the girls heard it a different way. They gasped and pulled more of Nodoka's hair out of her face.

"Doesn't it just?" stated Haruna, like it was fact. "She's such a cute girl, but she never shows her face." Nodoka started to turn bright red and pretty soon she ran off. Making her friends apologise to Negi before chasing after her.

Negi, being clueless as ever, just sat there staring after Nodoka, while he asked himself. "What was all that about…? What was her question?" He sat back down, and just as he did, he knocked a test tube out that held seven small pills. Negi recognised them instantly. "I can make that love potion that Asuna asked for last night!"

'It's technically cheating, but what ever. She won't mind.' He thought to himself as he chanted, _"Rastel Ma Scir Magister, Age Nascatur Potio Amoris!"_ With those little words, said love potion was complete. Negi snatched up the potion and ran off to the classroom, intent on giving it to her and making up for all the bad things he did.

* * *

Naruto was sound asleep in his chair, his head lolled back and his mouth wide open in a snore. He fell asleep while the cheerleaders talked about their routine. Also in the room were Konoka and Iincho. His sleep went undisturbed, even as Negi burst into the door calling for Asuna.

"Asuna-san, Asuna-san!" he called to her heaving breaths.

"**What do you want!"** she growled with a vein on her head threatening to burst.

"I did it! I actually did it!" he cheered, causing Asuna's expression to change.

"Did what?"

"The love potion, I actually made it." This time Asuna's expression changed from curious to just plain embarrassed.

"I don't want it." She calmly said striding away from Negi's claims of it actually working. With a growl Asuna spun around and slapped it from Negi's hands, sending the supposed 'Love Potion' flying. In a horrifying slow motion, the tube flew, the cork coming off as it tumbled through the air. It quickly came to a landing however, in Naruto's open mouth, with the opening lodged down his throat. This unfortunately caused him to choke and sputter, therefore waking him up. It was futile how ever, long before he could take the offending object out, the solution had already poured down his throat, leaving a strange taste in his mouth. It reminded him of sugared strawberries.

At first, Negi told Asuna to look away from him, yet she refused to, plainly expressing that it didn't work like he planed it to. That was until Konoka wondered up to Naruto.

"You know, Naruto-kun, now that I get a good look at you, you're really cute!" She then continued to hug the living day lights out of the still confused Naruto. Iincho didn't really want to know what was happening, but curiosity got the better of her. As soon as she saw Naruto's whisker-marked face, she sprang out of her seat and… Presented him with a bouquet of roses?

Not only was Naruto confused, so were Asuna, Negi and Konoka, who was still hugging him. It wasn't long before the Cheerleaders, including Naruto's roommate, started offering him gifts as well. Sakurako offered him some delicious looking cake, while Misa, a long haired girl, tried to give him clothes that she made. The love-sick girls then tackled him to the ground and attempted to take his clothes off, one layer at a time. Well most of them anyway, Konoka just watched and Sakurako tried to feed him.

If anyone could read Asuna's thoughts right now, they would be along the lines of 'It worked…! Damn it, I wasted a perfectly good opportunity to get Takahata-sensei.' For Negi's thoughts it was something like this, 'I'm not getting in the way of those girls. And for one I'm actually glad I didn't drink that.'

As soon as there was a lull in the girl's relentless assault for his virginity, he bolted from the room, with the girls still following him. The girls truly were relentless, he was going as fast as he could without using chakra and they were still catching up to him. 'I've got no choice' he thought as he focused the chakra into his legs. As he did, his speed increased twofold. Just as he thought himself safe, Konoka came up right next to him. At first he was incredibly shocked to see her keep up with him, and then he saw that she was wearing some kind of shoes with wheels on them. Desperate to get away, he took a sharp right hand turn, into a hallway that he hoped led to the exit. Before he even got to the end of the hallway, he was confronted by Iincho riding a horse and wielding a whip.

"You can't escape me, Naruto-sensei" she said, followed by a chorus of haughty laughter.

Without thinking, Naruto jumped clear over the horse and the Class Rep. Hitting the ground running, he kept up the pace. Following the various signs around the school building, he eventually came to an exit. But it was far in the distance and he could hear the girls getting closer and closer with every passing moment. He couldn't afford to lose speed; the light at the end of the tunnel was so close.

"Naruto-sensei!" he heard from behind him. He seriously hoped that what ever was affecting the girls wore off fast. Until that happened, he had to hide. And what better place to hide than where no-one will see you?

As soon as Naruto cleared the threshold, he made an immediate jump to the right. He turned to face the wall, and will more than enough momentum, he ran straight at it. Barely a metre away from the brick wall, he jumped high. Letting his feet take the impact, Naruto focused chakra into the soles of his feet and started running up the wall, not bothering to stop until he reached the roof, only there will he be safe. He closed the distance fast, watching the edge come closer and closer. Grabbing the ledge with his right hand, he pulled himself over the edge and listened to the girl's shouts for him. Finally in the clear, Naruto let himself relax.

* * *

Not long after the girls lost sight of Naruto, did the effects of the Love Potion stop completely. At first the girls were wondering where they were, they remembered being in the classroom, but then everything went blank. Iincho was the most confused, mostly because she was on a horse. Without saying anything, the five girls returned to the classroom.

For the rest of the day, Naruto stayed out of sight from any girl, until it was about time for him to go back to the dorms anyway. But before he could, he was summoned to the Principles office.

Upon entering the office, he was told to take a seat. Even if he was one for not following the rules, Naruto knew that the old man meant business. So he took a seat in front of the Principle's desk and payed utmost attention. Sasuke's death changed him severely from the loudmouth idiot that he used to be. He promised himself that no one close to himself would ever die again.

"Naruto-kun, what kinds of things can you achieve with Chakra?" questioned the old man.

"Well, I can do things that most people can't do; I can walk on water, walk on walls, and jump really high, transform to hide myself in crowds and such. Hey I can even make exact copies of myself." Naruto listed, counting off his fingers.

The old man contemplated this new information before speaking up again. "So, chakra can basically let you do many things, especially keep you hidden from sight. Interesting." He seemed to begin formulating ideas in his head, but not speaking them out loud. "In light of these apparent abilities of yours, I am giving you another task; being a student is to take second priority over this." Naruto nodded in understanding. "Watch over Negi-kun for me and give reports on his progress, whenever possible of course. I am hesitant to give you the details, but I doubt that you would follow orders unless you know why." He said while giving Naruto a knowing look.

"Well, yeah of course. It's part of a Ninja's job to know why I have to look out for the guy." Naruto reasoned, recalling the mission to Wave country.

"This may be a little hard to believe, but Negi is a mage, or to be more precise, a mage in training. He came to Mahora to continue his training; he didn't come willingly since it was part of his diploma from graduating from the magic academy in Wales." The Principle explained with a bit of humour in his voice. But he was stopped by Naruto holding up his hand.

"Wait, wait, wait. What _is_ a mage exactly?" He asked, completely confused.

"Uh, ok. A mage is someone that uses magic, an energy that is collected from all living things around oneself. They can focus it to do almost anything, given the right incantation. If you were to compare it to Chakra, it is completely different. I understand that Chakra comes from mixing one's spiritual energy and physical energy, and thus can only be used by that person. Magic, is universal, anyone can use it. Chi is physical energy alone; Ninjas at this present time use it.

"Mages manipulate Magic to do what they can. They often go by other names, such as 'Wizards' or 'Sorcerers'. Mages work in pairs, the mage and their disciple. The disciple guards their mage while they cast spells and such. Usually, as proof of performing the contract, he disciple gains a magical artefact. Artefacts are likely to compliment the disciple and their abilities. Do you understand?" he finished.

Naruto slowly nodded and went over the description, but there was one thing he didn't really understand. "Wait, you mentioned a 'contract', what sort of contract?"

"One which binds the Mage and their disciple, it is a sign of trust and acceptance. Like-wise one way to perform this contract is to kiss the other in a magic circle."

"This magic thing is weird."

"It is indeed strange."

"Well, if that's all you need, then I guess I'll get going." Naruto said as he stood up.

"Yes, just watch Negi for now, you will be paid accordingly. Also, if he happens to get into trouble, don't hesitate to help out. You might even want to tell him that it's one of your jobs to watch over him. Alas, I shall leave it up to you to decide how you approach this." The blonde teenager simply nodded and headed out towards the dorms.

* * *

He got back to the dorms, following the remaining girls. It took a little while, but he didn't mind. Naruto recalled his brief read over of Negi's roster and remembered something about a 'strolling club'. Judging from the name that was all they did, walk around aimlessly. Shikamaru might have liked that club, if it weren't too troublesome to walk. Naruto chuckled at that thought, almost anything other than watching clouds or playing shougi was considered troublesome. He would miss that guy.

He could vaguely remember that the second years were on the fifth and sixth floors of the building. He just continued wondering around until he found 2-A's ward. The blonde then had to check all the doors, seeing which one had Sakurako's name on it. He almost walked by a door that read 'Kagurazaka Asuna, Konoe Konoka, Negi'.

Sighing, the demon container knocked on the door. He was soon face to face with Asuna, who was rather annoyed that people kept knocking on the door. Naruto just asked for Negi. When the man himself finally came to the door, the blonde invited him to the rooftop for a talk. At first Negi was suspicious, but when Naruto mentioned mages, he immediately complied.

So here we find the two teenagers, one sitting on the edge, the other leaning against the door. There was a moment's silence before Naruto began talking.

"To make a long story short, the old man told me your secret and he asked me to help you out if you ever get into a tough spot. No offense to your personal pride." The demon container started.

"You? What could you do that I can't do better?" the red head retorted. Naruto's smile just grew larger.

"For one, this." He made a half-ram hand sign and vanished in a puff of smoke.

Negi suddenly felt a cold metal edge against his neck.

"There are quite a few more things that I can do besides this. It takes you what, five seconds or more to chant a spell, while it only takes me an instant to do this. Ja ne." he whispered before more smoke burst into existence. Leaving Negi there, stunned.

* * *

Naruto reappeared outside his dorm room that he shared with Sakurako. He turned the handle and made his way inside, intent on taking a shower, getting dinner done and going to sleep. Before he could do any of that, he had to face a rather curious Sakurako Shiina.

"So, where were you after lunch?" she asked with a completely oblivious smile on her face. Naruto shuddered at that particular memory.

"I fell asleep on the roof." It wasn't particularly true, but it wasn't false either.

"Why did you take so long to get back to me?" she asked again.

"What're you implying? That we're going out?" He countered. Seeing her hurt eyes, he just couldn't help but giving her a smile. "Sorry. I had to talk to the Principle. Or rather, he wanted to talk to me. You got any homework? I'd be happy to help."

"Yeah, I do." She sounded much happier than a few minutes ago.

"Ok, I'll help as soon as I've had a shower."

'I'm getting used to living here already.' Naruto thought as he let the warm water stream over him. Even under a constant stream of hot water, his hair still spiked up. He spent a good three minutes under the water, and came out wearing his pants and black shirt, with his jacket draped over one shoulder.

Sakurako was waiting for him on his bed, with that seemingly permanent grin plastered on her face. It reminded him of how he used to be. Without another word, they started on the work. With Naruto giving tips where he could, while he usually told jokes about what his old friends used to do.

Thanks to having someone else living with her, Sakurako finished the work in record time. She thought that she'd spend her new time making something for her roommate and crush. She was about to start, when she remembered that she already had a cake that she made in home economics. Unfortunately the sight of the cake made Naruto pass out, something she'd never thought possible.

That night, Naruto had a nightmare about rabid fan girls chasing him with determination only matched by him running from them.

* * *

AN: Chapter 4 done.

As you can probably tell this chapter was based on period two of the manga, a bitch to write if I may say so. I don't know how other writers do it; it seems to me that they just write what ever comes to mind and they're done.

Until next time look forward to the next Mages, Shinobi and School.

Krimzon-8 out.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 5:

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

It has been a few weeks since the 'Love Potion' incident. During those few weeks, only a couple of things happened that are worthy of mentioning. One being a volleyball game between Class 2-A and senior students, it all sprouted from a fight over Negi. Although Naruto was slightly jealous, he didn't really do anything to help, more or less because the High School girls were quite literally all over him. He knew what happened if you got between a girl and something they wanted. He unconsciously shivered while recalling a memory of Sakura.

After the slight trip down memory lane, Naruto was treated to the sight of Negi being pulled out from the girl's clutches by Takamichi. The older man simply gave Negi some advice before turning his attention to the senior girls and told them to stop acting like children. The teenage teacher was completely humiliated, he couldn't stop the fight. After the girls and Takamichi left, Negi was left there, shaking with anger and determination. Seeing this, Naruto leapt from his perch in a nearby tree and strode towards his new friend. Placing his hand on the dark-red head's shoulder, Naruto suggested that he blow off some steam. Negi grumbled a response. While the blond couldn't really hear him, it vaguely sounded like 'shut up.'

The former Ninja led the young Mage into a clearing in the forest, and tole him to just let his anger out. He could do what ever he wanted, although Naruto was rather shocked when Negi unleashed a powerful lightning bolt. The bolt barely missed him, but he could feel the static discharge from it. That was powerful, Naruto sorely underestimated him. If he was hit by that, he would have been left as a smoking, twitching mess for a long time, even with the Kyuubi's healing factor. Yet he noticed something was off, Negi didn't have his staff with him. Naruto always figured that a mage needed something to cast a spell with. It was about then that he caught sight of a band of metal wrapped around the young Mage's ring finger.

With the spell cast, Negi felt a lot better, sure he almost hit his only male friend, but he was aiming for him. Ever since he was beaten by the blonde's sneak attack, he was fostering slight hatred for him. Sure he said that he wasn't a threat to him, quite the opposite. Naruto was supposed to help him, under orders from the Academy Dean, and if necessary, the blond was to intercept any threat that he couldn't handle. The last idea was a bit laughable, sure people would like to get their hands on the son of the Thousand Master, but what ever came his way, Negi would deal with it himself. Truth be told, he wasn't all that good with hand to hand combat, at the moment he focused on ranged attack spells. He could continue being a long range person, if he had a partner. At the moment Naruto seemed like a good partner, but he wasn't really willing to do _that_, in order to get a pactio. He was snapped out of his thoughts as said blonde walked up to him and asked if he was feeling better. Negi nodded in affirmative, and then turned around to walk back to the school, knowing little of the danger that awaited him.

* * *

The girls of 2-A were changing their clothes in preparation for their PE class. All the while chatting about the recent fight and how Negi couldn't stop it, much to Iincho's aggravation. She couldn't really deny that 'her' Negi-sensei was inexperienced when it came to matters such as schoolyard disputes, she couldn't tolerate the amount of criticism that he was getting on behalf of it. Her voice screeched throughout the changing rooms, as she finally had enough and defended Negi's honour.

With the anger out of her system, she and the girls started trickling out to the rooftops, where a volleyball court was set up. As soon as they got there, they were greeted by the sight of the senior girls that attacked them and tried to steal Negi from them. Not only that, but their homeroom teacher was there too, along with his blonde assistant, both looking extremely reluctant to be there.

Pretty soon another argument broke out, but Negi suggested a compromise, which turned into a bet for the court and Negi. The game they were to play was dodge ball, which involved throwing the ball at the other team's members in order to get them out. Naruto, who had a free period, sat on the side along with a third of the class who, judging from their appearance looked like they could easily win the game. Among them were his roommate and her cheerleading friends, the girl with the weird ear things, and the girl who was apparently a Ninja. He considered going to help Negi, but he figured that it was none of his business, until Negi called out to him.

"Oi, Naruto-san! Aren't you gonna help?" he called from inside the court.

"Nah, I'll just enjoy the show!" Naruto shouted back.

"What show?"

"This one!" he indicated the cheerleaders in their routine, who blushed at the attention from the blonde.

Without any more interruptions, the game began. The lead senior girl lazily threw the ball at the panicking junior students. The ball slowly bounced over three girls, automatically getting them out with a single move. A bare minute after the game started, the seniors revealed themselves to be the 'Mahora Black Lilies Dodge Ball team.' The game progressed quickly, with the high schoolers getting more and more of the juniors out, while only losing one or two. Pretty soon, all that was left were Negi, Asuna and some of the girls from various sporting clubs. Asuna was the only one to actually get some of the seniors out. But when a ball was thrown at Negi, he caught it. Seeing a chance, he threw it up high. Slight doubt crossing his face, he leapt after it, his body bending in a strange back flip.

As Negi came level with the airborne ball, he snapped his legs forward, performing a kick using the momentum from his back flip. The ball had speed and gravity on its side, so the senior girls couldn't avoid it. The ball struck the first girl and bounced back up to Negi, who swung his arm downwards. The ball hit another senior and returned to the mage. But this time he simply grabbed it and fell down to the ground, landing gracefully.

Only five of the seniors were still in the game. Despite being able to hit another of the seniors, Negi passed the ball back to Ako, who was still in awe from his aerial manoeuvres. As soon as she snapped out, she kicked a ball to a single girl, who was staring at Naruto with hearts in her eyes; said hearts disappeared when she got hit. Four left.

Asuna caught a retaliation ball, and sent it back to the seniors with double the effort. Three left.

Makie Sasaki, a girl with glossy pink hair, somehow managed to grab the bill with her gymnastics ribbon and literally whipped one girl with it. Two left.

A senior snagged the ball and threw it sharply at Asuna, she got hit. The senior attacked Asuna again for good measure. But the second throw was intercepted by Negi, who said something about their behaviours, and threw it back. Although with a bit of his magic mixed in. Said throw resulted in the seniors leaving with nothing but their underwear on.

* * *

Another moment of notice was when Naruto was caught sleeping in his bed with Sakurako on top of him. At least they were clothed. Naruto had to find a new room to sleep in. But that was already taken care of. One of Ayaka's roommates had moved into another place, so he had to bunk there for the rest of the current school year. He wasn't really happy about it, yet he still vowed to make the most of it.

The room was strangely littered with 'Negi-sensei Merchandise' which was created and funded by Ayaka's family company. She had alarm clocks, toasters, T-shirts, mugs, glasses and just about everything that she could think have had Negi's face on it. The sight really disturbed Naruto. So during one weekend, when she went out, Naruto completely stripped the room of everything 'Negi related' and sealed them in a scroll that required his blood to open. While he was at it, Naruto impersonated Ayaka over the phone to her company, demanding that they stop production of Negi merchandise and destroy the remnants. They did so, but were a bit curious as to the change of heart.

When Ayaka got back, she immediately started looking everywhere for her beloved Negi-sensei merchandise. When she couldn't find anything, she called up the company and requested a new shipment, but was denied due to production being shut down and everything else relating to Negi was burned. As soon as she heard that, Ayaka fell down to her knees and started sobbing. Naruto took it upon himself to cheer her up. Eventually he convinced her that seeing Negi in person everyday was better than seeing his artificial face everywhere. Plus it also kept her from creeping out her room mate.

As a sign of good faith and exchange for her not stalking or being overly nice to Negi, he would put in a good word for her. For her end, she tried being a bit nicer to him, even going so far as to call him 'Naruto-Niisan'. Naruto responded to this, by calling her 'Imouto-chan'. From the way they squabbled, they would seem like brother and sister, and both of them seemed to enjoy it. Not to mention the similar hair colour and attitude traits they shared.

* * *

One time, Naruto went to have a bath in the large bath house that accompanied the dormitories, only to fall asleep, and be woken up when noises came from the entrance. Quickly and silently, Naruto rose to the top of the water and leapt to the ceiling, not before tying a towel around his waist however. As he stayed there, stuck on the ceiling, he noticed that Negi was being dragged along by Asuna into the bath. Negi quickly marvelled the size of the bath before being pulled back by Asuna and being washed. Naruto could only watch in amusement as Negi said that he was actually fourteen, and as the fiery red head responded by scrubbing his head even harder.

His amusement stopped, when he felt more people approaching. Pretty soon, the girls of his class trickled into the bath house, causing Negi and Asuna to hide behind the island in the middle of the pool-size bath. The girls began to settle down into groups and discussing about certain topics. Now Naruto, being as curious as he is, focused chakra into his ears to catch what the girls were talking about.

"Um, Konoka-san?" asked Nodoka.

"Yeah, Honya-chan?" she replied innocently

"Is it true... about Negi-sensei staying in your room?"

"What! This is the first that I heard about this!" screeched Naruto's surrogate little sister. "Who allowed him to stay in your room Konoka-san?"

"Grandfather did." Ayaka turned around, bit her thumbnail and muttered something that Naruto couldn't hear. It was about then that, Haruna suggested that she could ask the Dean for Negi to stay in her room, much to Nodoka's obvious distress.

Suddenly, the entire class started asking if they could have Negi in their rooms. Eventually, the girls settled on breast size to decide the winner. This was about the time that Asuna and Negi tried to make a break for it. It would have worked, if Negi didn't slip, causing Asuna to fall on top of him, putting the two of them in a rather awkward and uncomfortable position. This was all that Ayaka needed to accuse Asuna of taking advantage of Negi while he was naked.

All hell broke loose then. Negi was rather determined to stay with Asuna, so if they were giving him away to the girl with biggest breasts, he would make sure that it was Asuna. Dashing behind a wall, Negi chanted a small spell, which caused Asuna's swimsuit to expand around her chest. That pretty much settled the score for the rest, Asuna won. Even though her swimsuit kept expanding until it ruptured, causing Asuna to have chest pains for a while. After Asuna, Konoka and Negi left, another conversation broke out.

"So, shall we continue the competition? This time with flexibility and the prize being Naruto-kun." Naruto himself didn't know which girl said it; he was pretty sure it was Sakurako, none the less, it made his blood run cold. Any part of his that grew larger at the sight of naked girls, shrunk at the mention of that particular sentence.

"No, enough competitions for who gets to stay with who!" Surprisingly this one came from Ayaka. Naruto thought she'd give anything to be rid of him. "Nobody is going to make competitions for Naruto-niisan."

"Niisan?" questioned one girl, she sounded a bit mocking but it really didn't register.

"He insisted on it!" Ayaka rebuked, trying to justify her slip of the tongue.

As much as he wanted to stay and listen to his Imouto try to get her-self out of that pinch, he decided he had enough of eavesdropping and walked along the ceiling to the window that led outside. Thinking that he could get his clothes a bit later, he could always just use the transparency jutsu that he learned from Jiraiya as a parting gift. But he thought better of it, and just headed to the window of his room and climbed in. Another ten minutes later and Ayaka came back looking like she had ran a marathon with no drink. He snickered a bit before preparing some ramen for dinner. After that he would go to sleep.

* * *

A few days later, and it was almost time for the finals to take place. And as usual, Naruto was found running alongside Negi and several of his class. Most of them waved to Negi, while a small amount actually waved to Naruto, among them were his old roommate, Sakurako and Kaede Nagase. The time passed rather quickly and he soon found himself in his chair listening to Negi read something in English, only to ask for it translated to Japanese. Naruto frequently had free periods since he only had to attend three of the six classes. Since no one volunteered, he chose Makie Sasaki, one the girls who greeted him so enthusiastically. Negi himself seemed completely oblivious to the fact that it was the final exams soon. The students also seemed not a bit worried about the exams. As the bell rang signalling the lunch break, Negi was one of the first ones out. It was short lived however, for he was called straight to the Dean's office.

When he returned to class, he was completely serious. He shouted, in a rather loud voice, commands to the class telling them that the lesson will be a massive cram session. Then he added as an after thought for extra motivation.

"Actually something bad will happen if we're the last class in the year, again." As he finished, Negi saw his blonde friend quirk an eyebrow at him. Negi silently mouthed 'test' and Naruto backed down nodding in acceptance.

Suddenly Sakurako stood up and suggested a method for English study. Negi gave her the affirmative to continue.

"It's called English Phrase Study Yakyuken!" The very name made Naruto shudder and look fearfully toward Sakurako, who had a _very_ lecherous twinkle in her eye when she looked back at him.

He knew what she was trying to do, but did Negi? The red haired teen actually seemed to be thinking it over, completely oblivious to the shouts and cat calls the students were giving. Then, much to Naruto's displeasure, agreed to the idea. He then turned his back on the class to look at a chart in his hands, not noticing Asuna storm towards him to get stopped by Sakurako or see Naruto getting dragged into the mini-sea of girls to be forced to participate.

Naruto was asked questions left and right, none of them he knew the answer. So fast was he forced to strip his clothes that he didn't even notice they were gone until he saw them flying across the room. Looking behind him, he saw something that should have given him a nosebleed. The Baka Rangers were completely stripped of their school uniforms. Only Kaede and Ku Fei, had their skirts still on, Asuna and Makie didn't have their bras on leaving their chests covered by their arms, while they screamed in protest.

It was then that he looked at himself; he only had his boxers on, it didn't help that 'little Naruto' was getting a tad excited, the cold hands of an unnamed girl stroking him didn't help. A dull thud indicated that Negi finally found out what was going on. As the class was distracted, he gathered his clothes in a flash, put them on and sat in his chair all within ten seconds. He was not letting the girls see anymore of his flesh than was necessary. Noticing that their teacher was unconscious, the girls finally started putting their clothes back on. This was not going to be a day that Naruto would like to remember. He couldn't focus on the girls at the moment, so he just let them do what ever they wanted.

Before he knew it, it was the end of the day, with all the students heading back to the dorms. Negi himself only woke up just after the bell went.

* * *

It was about one in the morning when Negi was dragged out of bed. They didn't even let him get dressed. And within half an hour, he was standing in front of a pair of massive doors along with the Baka Rangers plus their 'ground team' which consisted of Haruna, Nodoka and Konoka.

From what he could tell, they were going into Library Island to collect a book of sorts, one that was on one of the lowest floors. Almost walked away, that was until he heard about the deadly traps in the lower floors. He woke up very fast and silently vowed to protect the girls from any harm. Little did he know of the shadow watching, that melted into the darkness.

* * *

AN: Chapter 5 done.

I know, I know, this chapter's shorter than the others, but I just can't get the energy to keep writing. Besides I'm only off by about 300 words.

Betcha' you weren't expecting Naruto's change in rooms and the fact that he has got a so called 'Little Sister'.

Well until next time Krimzon-8 out.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 6:

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

Library Island was exactly what Negi thought it would be. Massive and filled with books, hell he swore that he saw a tree with books instead of fruit and even a waterfall of books. Truly Library Island was a strange place. Even as he and his students wondered through the gigantic library, not one of them noticed the shadows shifting slightly every time they rounded a corner

True to Yue's word, the lower levels were guarded by numerous deadly perils and the occasional trap. Come consisted of swinging, spiked logs, pits that seemed to continue downwards forever and sometimes the odd crossbow bolt being fired at them. From time to time even the bookshelves fell down, trying to bury them in endless amounts of books. Unknown to the explorers, the shadow was moving closer and closer with each level they descended, but it was always at a far enough distance to not be noticed.

It took a long time but eventually, Negi and his students finally arrived at the final room, where the 'Magical Book' was supposedly held. At the sight of the book, the students rushed across a stone bridge towards it. This in turn triggered a trap. The bridge split along its length, causing everyone to fall down. Negi and Konoka landed near the edge of a giant stone platform, which was where everyone else fell. On the platform was a repeating pattern of circles that continued to fit the square, on each circle was a syllable and their respective translation in English. Across one edge of the massive square was a title of sorts.

"English Vocab Twister?" Asuna read out loud. Just then one of the statues that were seemingly guarding the book sprung to life. Hefting its massive hammer threateningly, it commanded in a deep booming voice that sent shivers down most of the student's spines.

"**If you want this book you'll have to answer my questions**!" The very room shuddered at the volume of the voice.

Negi thought that the voice was vaguely familiar, while the silent shadow knew that voice all too well.

"**First question! What is the English translation for 'Difficult'?"**

The question was met with a chorus of confused and questioning cries. Negi decided that he needed to act like a teacher at this point.

"Everyone calm down it'll be okay! If you answer the questions correctly we should be able to get out of this trap. Just press the corresponding buttons for 'Difficult'!"

The girls looked a bit dumbfounded, and then said that they didn't really know the answer, causing Negi to face-fault while the shadow simply chuckled. Konoka tried to simplify what her teacher had tried to relay. It was then that the Baka Rangers understood which left Negi with a twitching left eye.

Thanks to the wonders of simplification, The Baka Rangers quickly answered the question correctly. Only to have their cheers of victory dashed by another question and being told that they couldn't remove their limbs from the previous buttons.

Fifteen minutes later and the girls were tangled up quite a bit. Negi had to look away in order to stop it from burning into his mind. He was a guy but he still had honour to uphold. The shadow, which practically had an obligation to watch, almost had his cover blown by the glistening blood that was dripping onto the floor.

The fifteenth and final question was soon called, with the answer being the translation of 'Dish'. With the Baka Rangers in their compromising position and their limited ability to move about, they ultimately failed this question.

The statue gave a victorious bellow and swung its great hammer down upon the platform, shattering it and sending the teenagers down into the dark abyss. When the screams died out, a figure stepped from the shadows.

"Old man, don't you think that was a little too harsh?" the figure spoke with a little bit of concern and humour. The statue simply turned its single eye upon the new arrival.

"**Not at all, I have no reason to doubt Negi-kun and the others will be back in time for the exam."** It stated and any amount of animosity was gone from the usual booming voice.

"Well then, I guess that you should go make sure that they get back safely then." The figure said suddenly appearing behind the statue. With a swift kick, the massive moving block of stone toppled over the side and into the endless pit.

His job done, the figure burst into a puff of smoke, leaving no trace what so ever of their presence.

* * *

When Naruto walked into the classroom the next day, during another free period, the entire class was unnaturally burying their faces in their study books. The sight stunned the blond Jinchuuriki, the fact that the students were actually studying left him without words to speak. Regaining his composure, Naruto walked over to his Imouto-chan's seat and asked her what was going on. When she looked up, her face was looked like it belonged on a girl who just broke up with her boyfriend.

"I-I-If w-we don't p-pull ourselves out of l-last place then, N-Negi-sensei will be-" She cut herself off and started crying again. But what she said was enough for Naruto to deduce what happened. The girls figured out that Negi would be fired if the class came last. Naturally almost the entire class buckled down and started studying in order to keep their teacher.

Sighing, Naruto lightly ruffled Ayaka's hair reassuringly. "Don't worry, I guarantee that if you girls work hard enough he won't be going anywhere. I'll even help to the best of my ability." He tried to sound as brotherly as he could, but due to not having a family, he didn't know how to sound. So he was a bit shocked when Ayaka's tears suddenly stopped and she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a light hug. Naruto wasn't prepared for such a thing to happen, so he just lightly patted her back while she dug her face into his shoulder.

While this was happening, Sakurako was almost audibly growling with jealousy, Kazumi's hand was twitching towards her camera. Right in front of her was a great scoop. She could publish it in the school newspaper and say that they were fraternising in class. Alas she just couldn't bring herself to do so.

After a moment of embracing the figure she considered as an older brother, Ayaka released her hold on Naruto; she could feel some of the girls' glares on her. After taking her place again, she noticed that Sakurako didn't even look at her to confirm that she was there. Thinking it was nothing out of the ordinary, Ayaka returned to her book, fully intent on bringing back her Negi-sensei.

Naruto took this chance to sit in the teacher's chair; he knew very well that Negi might not be back for another two days, so he intended to make the most of it while he could. His brief moment of peace was actually interrupted when a student asked where Negi was. Naruto smirked and replied.

"Negi is taking the next two days to personally tutor the 'Baka Rangers', as you so call them, in Library Island." He said with a grin. "Also you should know that I am aware of the situation that Negi is in, so don't worry, if you need any help just ask." In his mind he was actually having a quick English language refreshment course from his resident demon, as well as math, geography and grammar. He couldn't help with History since he didn't know a thing about Japan.

Just as he suspected, Naruto was quickly swarmed by many of the girls asking for assistance, particularly from Sakurako. Luckily from the very quick study session, he could help with most of them, not giving them the answer, but giving them the process to do so.

Homeroom quickly came to an end, and the girls stopped trying to get Naruto's attention and went on their way. He knew that Negi had other classes, but he decided to let them have a free period. But to do so, he would have to get out of their way. After leaving a note instructing the classes that he was supposed to teach that they had a free period, Naruto headed for the roof. Upon arriving, he settled into his usual taijutsu stance, which was absolutely nothing at all. Whenever he tried to get assistance with his taijutsu, he never really got it, so Naruto eventually settled on teaching himself. When he was younger, he was always described as 'The Number One, Unpredictable, Knuckleheaded Ninja' and he intended to live up to it. With this in mind, Naruto always trained with a single shadow clone for taijutsu. Since he was so unpredictable, he couldn't predict himself. Naturally, fighting himself seemed like the best idea.

Positioning his hands in his most used seal, a single clone materialised beside him. Both Naruto's turned towards each other, nodded and took five steps back. Neither of them moved their arms from their places at their sides. Naruto favoured this positioning as he could always grab a kunai in a moments notice, as well as grabbing something from his pouch. But since he had neither with him, he would have to do without.

A slight breeze blew across the rooftops, and both blonds sprang towards each other and clashed. Exchanging blows between each other but never really hitting. Each punch or kick thrown was deflected, dodged or stopped. Both the clone and the original pulled some off-the-wall moves between them. It seemed that neither would get the upper hand, which was until the clone made a mistake. The clone stumbled a bit after blocking a downwards forearm swipe. The original Naruto swiftly grabbed hold of the clone's hair and swept the feet out from under it with his own legs. After the clone was falling from its own weight, Naruto harshly slammed the clone's head against the ground. He knew it was considered dirty and underhanded, but since the village had turned on him, he had to resort to such tactics.

The clone poofed out of existence, and Naruto sat along the edge of the roof, just staring up at the clouds. He never knew why Shikamaru spent hours at it, but he slowly understood why. Just like him, the clouds constantly changed, one moment they could be small, insignificant and peaceful and they could change into something numerous, foreboding and dangerous in as little as an hour. Mostly, they were free, no one could control them. They went with the flow of the wind. Naruto thought himself free ever since he came to this place, but it hasn't been that simple.

"Maybe none of us can be truly free." He muttered to nobody. He thought back to when he was still a Shinobi of Konoha. He had a duty to protect his village, even if they hated him. Naruto still liked the village, it was the most familiar place to him he could remember. He would miss it, but he wouldn't miss the inhabitants. He thought himself free from the broken heart that was given to him by Hinata. If he believed in higher beings, he would hate them for being shown someone that almost exactly resembles her in every way. He would never take his hatred out on someone who is completely oblivious to the way he felt.

Naruto shook his head to clear his mind of such thoughts. 'Fostering hatred only leads to one's ruin.' He reminded himself of the words from Sarutobi. Words that were proved right by Sasuke.

Looking at clouds just seemed to make him depressed, maybe that's why Shikamaru always acted like that. Lifting himself up, Naruto resolved to wander around town until the bell rang, then he would go back to the dorm room. Nothing of interest actually happened on his walk, just some stray kittens being chased by a stray dog. He did get a good look at the kittens though. One looked very familiar, especially with that ribbon on its ear. Rounding a corner he was confronted by a rather large woman who was shouting for her 'Tora-chan'. Naruto held his laughter until he was sure that the lady was out of earshot, which wasn't long.

Aside from that encounter, the rest of the day went rather smoothly. Before he knew it, there were girls pouring out from the main school building, signalling that the day was over. Slowly, Naruto made his way towards the dormitories. As soon as he entered the room, he laid himself down on his bed and was soon fast asleep.

* * *

The next two days were fine; mostly because they were weekends [I'm just assuming that weekends are free for Mahora]. The girls mostly spent their time in the cafeteria studying. Occasionally, one or two of the girls would ask for his help and he would gladly give it. When the twins Fuuka and Fumika were bored, they would try and play pranks on Naruto, but they always failed, one even backfired, getting a bunch of their classmates instead.

When it was late Sunday afternoon, Negi and crew came back, looking worse for the wear. Negi's clothes were ripped in a few places and the girls well… they didn't really have much on; they were practically naked when they got back. It took all of Naruto's willpower to not faint from blood loss at the sight. Of course, this didn't go without attention; Kazumi took quite a few snapshots while Ayaka tried to yell at them for 'seducing Negi-sensei'.

For the rest, well they tried their best not to laugh/scowl at the running Baka Rangers, although Naruto had quite a laugh himself when Negi crashed into a wall; due to him covering his eyes while running.

Negi was extremely embarrassed by the time he got back to the dorm room. He ran straight into a wall and he could hear Naruto laughing at him. As soon as he could, he ran into the room, flopped onto the couch and fell fast asleep. Negi's little adventure in Library Island had taken quite a toll on him.

Mean while, back down in the cafeteria, Naruto was still recovering from his laughing fit, yet it was soon cut short again, due to Yuna asking for help again. After assisting her, he then had to help Sakurako for what seemed like the fiftieth time that day. Although he didn't mind the food that she occasionally whipped up, Sakurako claimed that it was for study purposes in Home Economics, but Naruto wasn't entirely convinced. Never the less, it tasted great.

It wasn't long after Negi came back, that Naruto retired to the dorm room. He went straight to the room, only pausing to see how Negi was doing. It turns out that he wasn't doing too badly, just a case of exhaustion. Naruto just continued to the room he shared with Ayaka. It wasn't really that late in the night, just about seven. Still he figured that he could use the rest from tutoring the girls all day.

* * *

The following day was hectic to say the least. Naruto had to wake up Negi and hold down the fort until he arrived at school. When the exams started, Naruto didn't really have an idea of what he was supposed to do, instead of actually sitting the exams and guessing the answers, he created a clone to try for him.

A few hours later and the tests were done. Now all that remained was the results to be tallied and called out, which wouldn't happen for another two days. So as a reward for trying so hard, Negi gave the girls the homeroom period to do what ever they wanted. Unfortunately, this basically meant that the girls could attempt to molest their teacher, more so to Negi than Naruto. Yet the blonde had to deal with more 'less than subtle' attempts, from Sakurako, and a few others, including the Narutaki Twins, whenever he came to visit.

Eventually he couldn't stand much more, so he went where he always did when he needed a break. The school roof. It was there that no-one bothered to get his attention; he was left alone with his thoughts.

Negi was in deep trouble when Naruto decided to leave the room. While the girls who were after the blonde's affection simply went back to their seats, pouting that they didn't achieve anything. The vast majority of the girls still clung to Negi like glue. Well that was mostly true; it wasn't a vast majority, but a majority none the less. Whilst still being cuddled and squeezed from all sides, Negi tried to cast his eyes over the rest of the class. He vowed to get to know the rest of them over the school break. But as he swept his gaze over one Evangeline A.K. McDowell, he felt a shiver run straight up his spine. The girl's very look was ice cold, there was definitely something about this girl, but he couldn't put his finger on it. If he concentrated hard, he could truthfully feel some magic power emitting from her, yet it was so insignificant that he almost missed it. Negi made another silent vow. To keep his eye on that particular girl.

* * *

The day of announcement was at hand. It was the day that would decide Negi's career at Mahora Academy. As for the man himself, he was assembled with the Baka Rangers and several hundred girls in the main hall, where a massive TV screen was mounted. As the television flickered to life, all eyes in the hall were drawn to it. Naruto was sitting in a chair in the cafeteria. Sakurako had invited him to eat lunch with her cheerleading friends. He was close to falling asleep when the television mounted on the wall powered up. He instantly paid attention to the small screen, as well as the girls around him. Although he noticed that Sakurako was inching closer and closer towards him as the tension grew.

"The Average for Second Year was 73.4! Let's unveil the class grades!" spoke a third year girl, her voice echoing across the entire campus. "In first place with an average of 81.1, Second Year Class A. What an astonishing victory, from being last place for the half-yearly exams to being first in the finals, must have had some motivation huh? Congratulations Two-A."

Nearly everyone who heard this, quite literally crashed to the floor. Negi was ecstatic, Ku Fei had gained ten food vouchers from it, and Sakurako gained fifty. All in all, through out the campus, everyone could hear a massive 'YES!' from the girls of 2-A.

Whilst everyone was celebrating, Naruto simply bowed his head and smiled serenely. He knew that if the girls tried hard enough that they would succeed, but even he didn't predict that they would come in first place. Just as the next classes were going to be announced, the blonde student made his way to the roof, this time taking the faster way. By going up the outer wall. There he fell into a light nap, as was his usual routine.

* * *

By the time the bell rang, Naruto simply dangled his legs from the edge of the roof, choosing not to hear the concerned gasps from a few of the girls below. Without a second thought, he pushed himself off the edge and caught hold of a window sill. He proceeded to repeat this as to make his way down, still ignoring the worried screams. As his feet touched ground, he simply began to walk towards the dorms, like nothing ever happened. The girls, who were worried, were left with their eyes twitching and mouths agape.

Upon reaching the dorm, he dug through his backpack, searching for something that he had forgotten until his little mind wonder on the roof. Smiling as his hands touched a small glassy-prism attached to a thread, on either side of the prism, he could feel two smaller metallic beads. Closing his hand around it, he brought it out. Uncurling the hand revealed a glistening gem of clear blue-green. It was roughly hexagonal but it ended in a point. Naruto couldn't believe that he had forgotten about it. The Shodaime's Crystal passed down from Hashirama Senju, to Tsunade Senju, his granddaughter. Since then it has served as an omen of death for whoever wore it other than Tsunade herself. The only person to survive the curse was Naruto himself. He used to wear it as a constant reminder that anyone's fate can be changed by pure determination. Naruto silently slipped the crystal over his head. It would never leave his sight ever again.

* * *

Omake.

The statue gave a victorious bellow and swung its great hammer down upon the platform, shattering it and sending the teenagers down into the dark abyss. When the screams died out, a figure stepped from the shadows.

"Old man, don't you think that was a little too harsh?" the figure spoke with a little bit of concern and humour. The statue simply turned its single eye upon the new arrival.

"**Not at all, I have no reason to doubt Negi-kun and the others will be back in time for the exam."** It stated and any amount of animosity was gone from the usual booming voice.

"Well then, I guess that you should go make sure that they get back safely then." The figure said suddenly appearing behind the statue.

"**This is madness!"** the golem screamed, waving his hammer dangerously close to the figure.

"Madness?" the figure questioned. "THIS IS MAHORA!" The figure gave an almighty kick to the golem's torso, sending it down into the dark hole.

* * *

AN: ok so yeah a week later and now chapter 6 is up.

I have my reasons for not updating. *cough* Lost Planet 2 *cough*. Yeah so like my others, I did this one in roughly two sittings.

And sometimes I really get so immersed when reading Naruto Wiki. Don't know why though. I swear I only did it once during the last session.

Any who, until next time Krimzon-8 out!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 7: Spring Break

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demon talk"**

'**Demon Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

For the last few days of the term, Negi got a little slack with his teaching responsibilities. Instead of actually teaching, he was talking to the class to make arrangements for the break, in order to get to know them better and therefore make education easier for them. Most of the time, he was just going to be hanging around the dorm with Asuna and Konoka, maybe Naruto as well. Negi had already arranged several things, such as a tour of the campus for both Naruto and himself, given by the Strolling Club. Negi got the privilege of being escorted by the childish Narutaki Twins, while Naruto was going with Kaede Nagase, someone who reminded the blonde of his tenant. He figured that it was simply because of her looks.

Ayaka had invited both teachers to her estate, where she will be staying for the entire break. Sakurako had invited Naruto to watch her cheerleading practices and tournaments within the school. Kazumi offered to show Negi around the local newspaper office, and to get the article on him. For the rest of the time, Naruto simply didn't know what he would do. He could go and train in the wilderness, but that simply wasn't appealing to him.

Taking a quick glance at his clothes and taking an experimental pinch, with a sigh he noticed that they were really getting dirty. He never had the time to wash them, or buy any other clothes. Problem was that he still needed to collect his paycheque and to find somewhere to purchase clothes. Naruto was almost tempted to ask the students where to find some male clothing shops, but seeing how many looked at him with those heart-filled eyes was enough to discourage him. Another glace at his clothes said that he just might have to.

Swallowing his pride, he walked over to Sakurako, who was talking to her friends Madoka Kugimiya and Misa Kakizaki, who were fellow cheerleaders. As he approached, Misa said something and Sakurako quickly turned around, with her eternal grin ever present. When he got within arms reach, Naruto took a deep breath and spoke.

"Sakurako, you seem like a well-informed girl… Do you happen to know of any male clothing stores?" as soon as he finished his question, he instantly regretted asking Sakurako. The girl just looked at him with fire burning brightly in her eyes. Then she replied in a sweet voice that made him cringe.

"Tomorrow, we're going shopping, ok?" Before Naruto could answer, she continued. "Ok, meet me at the train station at eight in the morning sharp. It's going to be a long day and we have to get there early." Her friends confirmed with all knowing nods. Naruto just sighed in defeat and walked back to his seat.

'3, 2, 1, now.' He thought, and as predicted, a nearby girl jumped on Sakurako, demanding what she just did. Her friends responded for her, saying that she just got a date. The last thing Naruto did before the bell rang was face-palm.

* * *

At precisely 7:45 in the morning, Naruto was waiting at the train station. He was woken by Ayaka, since she was going to her estate.

After another fifteen minutes, people began to trickle into the station. But Naruto just stood there in his red jacket unzipped and hood down, revealing the shirt with the faint leaf symbol. Sitting comfortably in his thigh pocket was his old frog wallet. That would be another thing to change, the frog made him look a bit too childish. At least it brought back some good memories; it was his first birthday present he ever received.

While he was wrapped up in his thoughts, Sakurako approached him. She wore something completely different from her school uniform. A pale jacket over a black T-shirt, denim short skirt fastened with a white belt. Her foot wear was simple, white sneakers with red highlights. The only thing that didn't change was her hair and her smile. Despite all this, Naruto didn't even notice her until she was waving her hand in front of his face.

Seeing her wide smile, he couldn't help but smile back. Or well he couldn't until she dragged him into the next train to a place called 'Harajuku'. Sakurako explained that she and her friends went there nearly every week. She went on to say that it was her favourite hang out for her and her friends. They didn't have to wait long for the train to arrive; or rather they did, but due to Sakurako's constant talking, time flew by.

Yet again Naruto found himself being dragged along by the cheerleader, only for her to stop in the middle of a street and loop her arm around his. Naruto looked away nervously due to the close contact. They both started walking slowly through the streets, with Naruto sending 'death glares' at any teenage guy who looked at Sakurako. Several of them could even swear they saw the blonde's eyes change to red for a brief moment.

Eventually the two came across a store that sold men's apparel. Without waiting, Sakurako dragged the poor blonde inside, where she practically forced him to try on several different styles. One which he actually liked was a pale blue polo shirt, covering a white undershirt. Adorning his legs were a pair of dark denim jeans, the shoes were comfortable skate shoes with spiralling patterns. The top buttons of the shirt were undone to show the Shodaime's necklace. Another was a dark grey jacket with deep red highlights, a darker shirt with the kanji for fire and khaki cargo pants. To complete that picture was a pair of sunglasses with orange reflective lenses.

After he bought several 'casual' clothes, he then had to get a formal suit. This was more difficult, since he seriously insisted on having orange somewhere visible on him. Sakurako had to settle for a rust orange polo shirt that was mostly covered up by a black tie and a faded green coat, with matching pants. Completing the outfit was a pair of shiny black shoes. He bought two sets with different ties.

The two left for a common restaurant, although Naruto took a slight detour into a surf shop and came back out with a leather wallet with a red whirlpool pattern. Over lunch, the two made small talk, mostly about their childhood. This in turn brought up a slightly sensitive subject.

"So, are you going to miss any of your friends back home?" Sakurako asked. She had already told him that, she Madoka and Misa were friends since elementary school. And she was getting tired of the boy in front never saying anything about himself.

"No, they won't miss me. So why should I miss them?" He asks rhetorically. "They can all burn alive for all I care. But I will never see them again, so good luck on that affecting me." Sakurako was completely shocked by his answer, add to the fact that he said it with a straight face, and she was scared.

"Why would you want that to happen to anyone?" she questioned quietly.

"They hated me, everyone back home hated me. Because of something my father did, they hated me with every passing day. Hardly anyone would be my friend, and when I finally did get friends, they were gone pretty quickly." He responded, looking out the window at some kids playing around. As they did so, he let a small smile cross his features, but it quickly vanished as he turned back to her with his fox-like grin. "Well, you ready to head back or was there something else you wanted to do?"

* * *

It was sunset now, Sakurako Shiina and Naruto Uzumaki, were looking over Mahora Academy campus from a lookout on top of a hill. The two were sitting rather close together, practically touching. This was taken another step up when Sakurako yawned and started leaning on Naruto, resting her head on his shoulder. Naruto for one wasn't too comfortable with the contact, it felt different to him. He certainly felt a small attraction to the girl, but he still had emotional wounds that weren't healed. But there was one thing that he knew; he always did want to feel welcomed by someone.

Naruto only saw a couple of romance movies, plus he read a little bit from Ero-sennin's novels. So he slid his arm around Sakurako's waist and pulled her a little closer. He heard a sharp breath from her as he did. Very slowly, she twisted her head to look at him, confusion was plastered over face. And very softly he whispered.

"All my life, I've been alone. And for once, I don't want to feel alone."

Sakurako's heart fluttered, Naruto willingly placed his arm around her, and then he said that he didn't want to feel alone. It was enough for her to simply melt into his grasp. But Naruto wasn't finished; he leaned forward and laid a very light kiss on her lips. It was then that she truly fell to pieces. Naruto had to carry her halfway back to the dorm rooms.

When they did arrive, Naruto wished her goodnight and such. Sakurako was still in shock, add to the fact that after the blonde walked into his dorm room, Misa and Madoka came out and started questioning her for all their worth. When they couldn't get the answers out of her, they tried teenage girl torture a.k.a. tickling. Even then they still didn't get the answers. The two cheerleaders just decided to wait until their friend snapped out of it.

* * *

Over the next couple of weeks, nothing of much interest happened. Basically the only thing worth mentioning was that Naruto went on his tour with Kaede Nagase, who was just a little shorter than he was. She also seemed to have the tendency to use the honorific '-dono' for nearly everyone, which sounded like she doesn't hold herself with high regards, or just likes to use it due to habit. Every time that he saw her when they were walking, she had her eyes closed. He thought back to the day he came to Mahora, Negi's class roster said 'ninja' underneath her picture. So when they were alone, he decided to ask her about that.

"Kaede-san, you know what the class roster says about you?" He asked out of the blue. She blinked, and then replied to the negative. "It says that you're a Ninja." She chuckled a bit at that.

"It's true de gozaru. I am from the Koga Ninja Clan. My parents don't follow the ninja traditions, so all my techniques and styles are self-taught." She replied. "Why are you so interested?" this time it was Naruto's turn to chuckle.

"Would you believe that I am a ninja also? Although I use different techniques and forms, I assure you I meet the basic requirements." He said. "Actually how long have you been training?"

"Hoho, Naruto-dono, I have been training since I became twelve, so in short two and a half years, de gozaru."

"I guess that means that you should be calling me Naruto-senpai. I became an official ninja when I was twelve, but I was training since I was six."

"Hmm, Naruto-senpai." She mulled it over and over, testing it out. "I guess so, by the way, I was going into the mountains to train later this week, for training. Would you like to join me for a bit?" she asked suddenly. Naruto mentally checked his calendar.

"I can join you for the last week, everything before that is full, well except for the weekends. Can you hold off until the last week?"

The tall girl nodded and they continued the tour, pretty much acting like nothing happened.

* * *

With little more than a few weeks left in the spring break, Naruto was hard-pressed to find anything to do. Although he was eagerly waiting for the camping trip with Kaede, there were still some things he still needed to do.

Negi's interview with Kazumi was nothing special, just some questions on where he came from and his interests. Outside of the interview, she asked Naruto about the necklace that he wore. He said that he won it as a bet, and that it served as a constant reminder. When he was asked of what it reminded him of, he answered with 'It says that I can change my own fate.'

On the next weekend, he went and watched Sakurako's cheerleading competition. He was surprised at how agile and flexible the girls were, but Sakurako still held most of attention. When she finished her performance, she blew a kiss to him. Several of the guys around him thought it was directed at them, so they tried to confront her at the change rooms. Sakurako ignored them all and went straight to Naruto, much to the other's disappointment.

The next week, Naruto, Negi, Konoka and Asuna all went to Ayaka's house. Negi nearly fell down when he saw the sheer size of it, Naruto merely shrugged saying, 'I've seen bigger.' While the girls remained indifferent. Not long after arriving, Ayaka approached, wearing a rather fancy dress. She promptly fell down when she sighted Asuna and Konoka, clearly not expecting them.

"A bit too dressed up for wallowing in the dirt don't you think, Imouto-chan?" mocked Naruto. Ayaka didn't register him and went straight for Asuna, demanding to know why she was here.

"He sleeps under my roof. Besides, who knows what you would do to him if you were left alone with him?" She teased innocently, which prompted Ayaka into throwing punches at her. While the maids, Negi and Konoka tried to stop the fight, Naruto simply stood back and watched how it went. To him it reminded him of Sasuke and himself on one of their 'better' days.

The fight soon stopped, Ayaka actually forgot that she invited Negi, so she naturally asked why he came to visit. He responded by saying that he simply wanted to get to know the class representative better. Ayaka completely misunderstood what he was trying to say. That said, she nearly fainted and quickly led Negi off to her bedroom. If it wasn't so seriously misunderstood, Naruto might have actually burst out laughing. Just to make sure Ayaka didn't rape the person he was supposed to guard, he, Asuna and Konoka went after them.

After a comment about the size of the room, several pots of tea as well as several plates of dessert were brought in. Negi stated that he liked herbal tea, due to his older sister always making it for him. This, of course, made two people in the room confused.

"You have an older sister?" Both Naruto and Ayaka said in almost perfect sync. With Naruto's input, the female blond glared at her nii-san. He just gave a shrug that said, 'I didn't know.'

Asuna, being the impatient girl that she is, was pretty bored by now. She stood up and said that she was going for a swim, with Konoka confirming that there was indeed a pool. Within five minutes, all five of them were down by the pool. Asuna and Konoka were wearing their regulation school swimsuits, Negi with a waterproof jacket and board shorts, Ayaka with her white bathing suit and Naruto with just a pair of board shorts on.

In a split second, Asuna, Konoka and Naruto all jumped into the water. Ayaka was embarrassed by her rival's childish behaviour, and Negi smiled a bit. Not long after the splashes from all three settled down, the three teenagers emerged, with Asuna challenging Negi to a race, although Naruto met it. Negi simply stated that she was 'as fast as a Kappa', and thus declined. Despite Negi's claim, Naruto won the race.

It wasn't long before Ayaka tried pulling 'the moves' on Negi again. This roughly translated into, 'Shoving Negi's face into her breasts'. To put a stop to this act of abuse (Negi couldn't breath), Asuna quickly stepped in, or rather jumped in, and delivered a decisive kick to the class representative.

Ayaka seemingly had enough of Asuna's antics and demanded her to leave, after a little fight of course. Asuna, for once complied with out another fight. Negi also took this as his cue to leave also. But before he did, he conversed a little with Ayaka, simply stating that they must be good friends. Naruto stepped in before she could deny it.

"Face it, Imouto-chan, you two are really good friends. It's just that neither of you want to admit it. I had a similar relationship with another guy a little while ago. Needless to say, it got a bit out of hand and I left for good." He reasoned. "Treasure your friendship; it might not always be so forgiving." Negi decided to pipe in about now.

"By the way Iincho, Asuna-san said that you were supposed to have an older brother. Roughly around our ages." He said with a smile. "Asuna suggested that we lead Naruto-san here, so that he might be your older brother for the day." Both Naruto and Ayaka resembled a fish, opening and closing their mouths, trying to make them work.

Ayaka remembered that day, the day when her father said that she was supposed to have an older brother. Yet it never happened, she was supposed to have an older brother, but he died at child birth. It took her parents months to get over it and try again, that result turned out to be Ayaka. She always wondered what it would be like to have an older brother. Ayaka always pretended to have an imaginary older brother when ever she was sad or depressed. And ever since Naruto appeared, she practically had one. He cheered her up when she was sad about the possibility that Negi could have been fired.

"So this was all a plot to make Imouto-chan, here happier?" Naruto asked, uncertain. Negi simply nodded and took his leave, before either of them could protest. When he did leave, Naruto turned to the girl that he considered a little sister. "It seems that you've got some great friends there. And hey, did you know that it was my dream to be part of a family?" Ayaka simply shook her head. "Well, it seems that I am unofficially part of your family now." He stated with a smile.

Then, Ayaka truly smiled since the start of the day.

"Well, we still have a few hours of sunlight left. Why don't we do something?"

"Hai, Naruto-niisan."

* * *

Later that night, Naruto returned back to his dorm room. The remainder of the day was spent doing what Ayaka always wanted to do with an older brother. He ran around the house when he made her mad and tickled her when she caught up to him. They played several games, both electronic and physical. For once, Naruto actually felt that he had a sibling. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

* * *

Finally the day had arrived. Naruto was finally allowed to let loose with his ninja training. And the best thing was that he could do it without repercussions. Kaede told him to wait outside the dorms for her. It was about seven in the morning, and she still hadn't shown up. Naruto, being dressed in his usual attire, had actually seemed to pack light, but to anyone that knew him, he actually had several storage scrolls. Said scrolls held everything he would need, a tent, basic rations and a whetstone for sharpening his tools.

Not long after mentally reviewing his stock, did he hear footsteps, very light footsteps. Naruto waited until the steps sounded very close, then at speeds that only ninja could follow, he spun around and caught the person off guard. Holding a blunted kunai to Kaede's neck, he smiled.

"Thought you could sneak up on me did you?"

Kaede's slight smile shone back at him. She briefly opened her eyes, revealing a shade of green that caught his breath. They were almost exactly the same as Sakura's, except Kaede's were a bit darker. Slowly, he lowered the kunai from her throat.

"Shall we get going?" Naruto asked quietly.

"Hai, hai. Try to keep up Naruto-senpai." She teased with a confident smirk.

Without warning, Kaede leapt to the top of the building opposite them with surprising grace. Not wanting to be left behind, Naruto followed suit, though noticeably faster. Within seconds he had caught up to the Kunoichi.

While he was chasing her, Naruto noticed her clothing. It was a tanned brown robe, of classic ninja. Not to mention her long tail of hair, she definitely gave off a feel that she was indeed a ninja. He also couldn't help but note that her clothing was tight-fitting, showing off her well developed frame. For the moment, he shoved those distracting thoughts from his mind and concentrated on following her towards the forest edge.

The two reached it in a few minutes. When Kaede arrived, she smirked, thinking that she lost Naruto. As a result of her over-confidence, her jaw dropped when he walked out from behind a tree, smiling brightly.

"So we going to continue or are you just going to keep gaping?"

Kaede picked her jaw up and briskly walked into the tree line, with Naruto trailing after her.

The hike to her training spot was an hour long. The spot in question was a small clearing directly over a shallow fresh water stream which had several char swimming about. First thing to do was set up a tent, didn't take to long. Especially since Kaede used shadow clones. They didn't set it up too far from the stream.

"Ok, Now that the tent's done. We need to catch lunch, de gozaru" She announced.

"Catch, eh?"

Kaede didn't bother to respond. She simply grabbed a handful of kunai and walked over to the river bank. When ever a char jumped out of the water, she threw the kunai at it. Out of five jumping fish, she got three. Naruto also noted with a chuckle that her kunai were at least twice as small as his.

"Amateur," he joked, when she walked back with only three. Sure enough, Kaede challenged him to get more than she did. Like usual, Naruto accepted.

Five minutes later, they had a fire going, with the two ninja cooking their char above it. Naruto came back with five char impaled on his kunai. He did gloat a little, but it was limited to, 'Told you.' And since he was a nice guy, he gave her one of his catches. That was the morning training over. The afternoon training consisted of climbing the mountain to get mushrooms that grow at the peak and catching fish with their hands.

Kaede had the hard way of climbing the mountain; she dug her kunai into the cliff-face. Naruto simply walked up the side like it was nothing. It seemed to him that Kaede wasn't up to that part yet. It was to be expected from someone self-taught. Kaede slipped once, but Naruto caught her. Once up, they found the mushrooms within a few minutes. As luck would have it, a bear was residing on the mountain. The two did have to run away, and yet again Naruto made it look like child's play.

Catching fish with their hands wasn't too hard either. Kaede didn't have much of a fuss, and neither did Naruto. It was quickly over, leaving them both with full packs of fish and mushrooms for dinner.

Dinner was held during the night, so they were illuminated by the flame's light. It was about then that Naruto decided to bring up something.

"Ne, Kaede-san, what rank are you?" the question caught her off guards, as she was in the middle of taking a bite out of a fish. After taking a moment to chew and swallow, she answered.

"Chunin, I would guess that you are Jonin?" She smiled as she answered, proud of her position.

"Actually, I'm a Chunin as well, didn't have the time to take the Jonin exam." He explained

"Exam?" now she was generally curious.

"Yeah, where I came from, there was an exam to determine whether or not someone was worthy of advancing. It usually had three stages, one was to determine the ability to see underneath the underneath, another was to determine teamwork and the final one was about individual skill.

"There could be at least a hundred or so people at the start, but only five or six by the end. Some people even died from time to time. The final stage was usually held as a festival of sorts."

"I see, within my clan, one only could advance when they have proven themselves worthy of the title. Are you from any clan Naruto-sempai?"

"Nah, my parents weren't from any clans. Instead I was part of a large village of ninja. There were several clans that were part of it."

"I see." She let the subject drop after that.

* * *

After dinner, she asked him to help prepare a bath. Naruto handled the heavy lifting, or placing the empty oil drum on two bricks. Between the bricks was a small fire. Near the bottom of the drum were criss-crossing planks of wood, to stop burning he supposed. Kaede came back with water from the stream and filled it up. Almost immediately the water began getting warm.

Kaede offered the blonde to have the first bath; the catch was that he had to be naked. Naruto embarrassed and naked, slowly got himself into the warm water, luckily Kaede was looking away. After a minute or so of soaking in the warm water, Kaede started taking off her clothes.

"Move over, I'm taking a bath too." She announced. Naruto blanched and quickly looked away. Unfortunately for him, he caught sight of a little part of something he really didn't want to look at. An agonising minute later, and she was sitting on his lap, with her head resting against his chest.

For one Kaede was enjoying herself, Naruto, not so much. He was using all his willpower to not look down at her feminine figure, trying to focus on a nearby tree instead. But his focus was broken at the sound of her voice.

"This is a nice bath isn't, sensei?" The words came out quiet and husky. The tone didn't really help Naruto trying to control his hormones.

"Yeah, whatever you say." He replied, still rather uncomfortable.

"Oh, come on, you know you like this." She said with her voice still in that tone, she was even drawing circles on his chest with her finger.

* * *

Luckily, Naruto got out of that bath with his virginity still intact. After all, he wanted to lose it with someone he loved. What made things worse was that Kaede had insisted that they sleep in the same tent. So here he was, head on a pillow, staring up at the top of the tent, with Kaede using his arm as a pillow. For the tenth time that night a thought ran through his mind.

'I should have stayed back at the dorms.'

* * *

AN: Well, well, well. Kaede acted fast.

Yeah, I spent more than enough words on that particular part.

And before someone says this, IT'S NOT GOING TO BE A GODDAMN HAREM!

Also I would like to describe what I think when I see the word 'harem' (trust me it gets brutally misunderstood)

"The protagonist of the story ending up with 3 plus girls in the same bed."

This will be different; Naruto won't have several girls on one bed with him. Truly I will not write that. There may be 'love triangles' or love squares or something, but no harems.

Kaede wasn't really meant to be part of Naruto's affections, but I only did this because I figured that there would be someone somewhere trying to demand this of me. That and I felt like it would add more material.

Until next time, Krimzon-8 out.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 8: First Day Back

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demonic talk"**

'**Demonic Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

The rest of the week passed rather slowly for Naruto. At least he wasn't around the dorms when the _entire_ class heard about Negi's 'partner troubles'. Every girl that was infatuated with Negi had chased him around the school, screaming for him to choose them. He mostly tried to ignore them, that was, until they became bolder. Pretty soon he was reminded of his last years in the Magic academy, being chased through corridors, across fields and through the sky… in some cases that is.

Fortunately, the girl's didn't bother to look up. If they were to do so, they would have spotted him making notes while on one of the world tree's branches. Negi was still in awe from the size of the tree, it was truly magnificent. What he was taking notes on was how Naruto got behind him in under a second.

He had a few theories on how he did it. The first was teleportation, but he ruled it out, due to him not sensing any chi or magic from the blonde. Another was that he was naturally that fast, yet again it was ruled out. Mostly due to that there was no one alive who could move that fast with natural ability. The last two seemed most likely. Either he was using a device to slow down time just enough for Naruto to make it seem like he was moving instantly. Or he was utilising a completely different energy, one which he could not sense.

Even the device idea seemed like a stretch, though it was possible. There was only one clue to the true answer, the formation of the blonde's hands when it happened. His research revealed that the hand sign he saw, was mostly used by Shinobi. It was strange, since each book about Ninja said that they used chi for their techniques, and yet there was no mention of instant movement. There was a mention of _'Shunshin'_, and even that was just moving faster than the average eye can follow. Negi had much better reflexes than anyone back at the academy, even surpassing the dean's. Even if he did move that fast, there should have been a blur in Negi's vision. He just couldn't figure it out.

And so here he is, fiddling with ideas in his head, hopefully trying to emulate the same effect with magic, the problem was that the incantation completely counter-acted it. What Naruto said was right, it would take a few seconds to chant the spell, and a few seconds could mean winning or losing a battle. There were too many flaws for it to be used in battle. Until the young mage could figure out a way to achieve the effect at one's will, the spell would be put on the shelf.

* * *

At the same time that Negi was running from royalty-wannabes, Naruto was eagerly awaiting the time that he could head back to campus, and hopefully away from Kaede. All week, she has either been flirting with him or just out right teasing him with her body. The whole situation made him uncomfortable. One time in particular, when he was walking up the side of the mountain with Kaede holding onto his waist. About half way up, she boldly put her hand where it really shouldn't have been. This sudden shift of grip and mild pain caused Naruto to lose concentration and slip. The fall didn't really hurt either of them, but it did leave them in a compromising position, one which Kaede didn't really want to move from.

Naruto's hand was resting on her rear while the other stopped her falling by catching her chest. Taken into account that her legs were on either side of him, it would have been taken the wrong way if they were seen by anyone. Without warning, Kaede started lowering her face onto his. Luckily, she was stopped when a frog jumped out of nowhere and landed on the blonde's face. Upon seeing the frog, Kaede promptly jumped up, screamed and ran back to the camp at the pace that only a Ninja could achieve. For saving him from his predicament, Naruto caught the frog a nice big, juicy fly as a thankyou.

Ever since then, Naruto has been warily avoiding being caught alone with Kaede. Training was exempt from that rule, since she took her training rather seriously. She did go full out sometimes, even if the blonde didn't. He was simply too fast for her to follow. Naruto did learn something interesting, even though Kaede could use Shadow Clones; she had no clue on how to do a Kawarimi or even a decent henge. Though she could still use Chi enhanced attacks and enhanced speed, she was completely below Naruto. Even with these interesting facts swimming around in his memories, the teen really did want to just go back to the dorms. Thankfully, there was only half a day of being stuck on the mountain, and most of that time would consist of packing up and walking back down.

Upon sunset of the next day, Naruto and Kaede arrived back at the dorms. Completely disregarding his companion, the blonde went straight to his room.

* * *

The next morning, Naruto was already up and moving by the time the sun came up. It was the day that Negi was to be inaugurated as an official teacher not to mention the first day of the New School Year. By the time that the bell rang, he was already in the main hall, awaiting the other teachers and the students. There was a stage assembled at the front, supposedly where the dean and Negi will be standing. And as he predicted, an announcement went out for all students to line up in the hall. Within fifteen minutes, the whole place was packed. Students were lined up according to their homeroom classes, while teachers were spread out around the edges, looking for any troublemakers.

The assembly went by smoothly, with teachers and students alike welcoming Negi into their community. At the end, Negi was thoroughly embarrassed as he walked through the crowds of people. His class for the year would be 3-A, which was also last year's 2-A. So naturally both Naruto and Negi were looking forward to this year.

"I'm now the official teacher for third year, class A. My name is Negi Springfield. I'll be your teacher from here until March next year. I'm sure it will be a pleasure to teach you all," Announced the teenage teacher, while Naruto simply rolled his eyes from his position outside the window.

The response from the class was almost enough to rival a concert. "YES! PLEASE TAKE CARE OF US!" many of the girls all but screamed out.

Negi simply chuckled and looked about the class. There were so many that he still hasn't talked to. It was then that he felt a glare pierce his defences, in response; he followed the gaze to the source. It was Evangeline A.K. McDowell. The very girl that had glared at him before, before he could get any further into his thoughts, a knock at the door distracted him.

"Negi-sensei. The school has its health check up today. Please tell the students to prepare accordingly." Shizuna reminded from the doorway.

"Ah, that's right. Can't believe I forgot. Understood Shizuna-sensei." He turned to the class. "Alright girls, a health check up is about to take place. Everyone, please prepare to take off your cl-argh!" he was interrupted when Naruto suddenly jumped into the room, held him in a headlock and dragged him out. It didn't matter however, since the girls got what he tried to say. Many of them had blushes dusting their cheeks, while some were completely red. When the door closed, quite a few girls actually burst out laughing.

"Negi-kun is so ecchi. Too bad Naruto-kun isn't, I wouldn't mind if he was giving the physical examinations." Sakurako said in a dreamy voice. Kaede and some others nodded in agreement.

* * *

While the girls started undressing in the classroom, Negi and Naruto were busy trying to ignore their imaginations. The fact that they could hear giggles and screams of horror didn't help.

"Sounds like they're having fun." Negi stated with an edge of embarrassment lurking in his voice. Under his skin, his hormones were raging and screaming at him to just open the door a crack and peek in.

"I don't doubt it Springfield." Naruto replied. "They're girls, they can have fun while being with each other naked." At that remark, Negi just looked a bit awkwardly at him.

"Well, at least these girls I can handle. The ones back home-" he shivered, "they could use magic and followed me everywhere, even when I flew."

"That sounds vaguely familiar, but I just can't place it." Naruto said while in his thinking pose.

Negi was about to reply when he felt a very strange feeling. It was like someone just jabbed him in the side of the head. Before he could make anything of it, one of the students who had already taken her check up, ran whilst screaming for them. Naruto remembered her name being Ako Izumi.

"Sensei! We've got a problem, Makie is… Makie is!" she called as she got closer and closer.

At the mention of Makie, the girls inside the classroom suddenly opened the door, not caring that they had only their underwear on, and shouted. "What? What happened to Makie!"

Naruto fainted after he saw Sakurako's 'perverted glint' in her eye, while Negi tried to desperately cover his eyes and burn the image from his brain. Now Negi's not gay, he just values his job over primal urges.

After fifteen minutes, smelling salts and getting clothed, Negi, Naruto, Sakurako, Fuuka, Fumika, Konoka and Asuna were in the infirmary. Makie was sleeping soundly in the clinic bed with Shizuna hovering above her. Without anyone asking, the school nurse explained.

"She was found sleeping in Sakura lane."

"Well it doesn't seem like a big deal after all." Fuuka said, resting her head in her hands.

"Perhaps she drank too much Amasake?" Sakurako suggested whilst discreetly inching towards Naruto.

"Yesterday was hot, so maybe she collapsed from being exposed to the cold." Konoka added in her constant happiness state.

Negi was deep in thought as he looked over Makie's unconscious form. 'There is something different going on…It's very weak, but I can sense magical energy. What could this mean? Is there another person who can use magic, or is it an enigma like Naruto-san?' His thoughts were broken by Asuna who was a bit concerned about his unusual quietness. Negi simply waved off the concern, saying that Makie was 'a tad anaemic'; he also stated that he might be home later than usual.

Naruto, on the other hand, noticed something that the girls missed. On the left of Makie's neck were two very distinct bite marks. Recalling his first time in the Chunin exams, it was the precise area where Sasuke was bitten by Orochimaru. It may not hold any similarities, but it never hurt to be sure. Lifting the girl up slightly, he examined the rest of her neck, he wasn't sure, but there was a feeling very similar to chakra. Just behind her neck was a tiny mark, the design wasn't like the Curse Seal, only time would tell if it would have a similar purpose. Naruto gently put her back down and left silently.

The rest of the day was spent listening to Negi's ramblings in English. When the final bell rang, Naruto took his time, and very subtly, followed Negi.

* * *

A small group of five girls walked towards the dormitories. Said girls, were chatting about several things, one topic that didn't fail to make an appearance was their 'Teenage Wonder of a Teacher', also known as Negi. When they caught sight of the full moon, another topic arose.

"I wonder if the vampire will really appear…"

"A rumour like that has got to be fake!"

"Yeah, but still..."

The five arrived at a junction, one led through Sakura lane towards a small library, and the other towards the dormitories. One girl split off from the others, waved them goodbye and proceeded down Sakura lane, humming as she went. Just as she passed a humble vending machine, the wind suddenly started blowing much stronger. The girl quickly stopped humming and started chanting, 'I'm not scared, I'm not scared, not scared.' The once steady falling of cherry blossoms had quickened with the wind, giving the slight illusion of a snowy night.

The girl stopped her chanting mid-sentence; there was a slight rustling within the branches. It was on left, then the right, and finally right above her. As the rustling stopped, a large shadow slowly rose over the frightened girl. Snapping to look at what caused the shadow, the girl saw a dark figure perched atop a lamp post highlighted by the moon, its long, golden hair billowing out behind it. In a sickly sweet, and distinctly female, voice it addressed its prey.

"Seat number twenty seven, Nodoka Miyazaki, isn't it?" With her mouth twisted into a smile, Nodoka could see the fangs that completed the demonic image of a vampire. "Sorry, but I'll be taking some of that blood of yours."

As she finished speaking, the vampire lunged from her perch. Nodoka promptly passed out from the fright. Just before the bloodsucker reached her prey, a shout cancelled her attack.

"Hold it right there! What are you doing to my student!" Negi shouted whilst skimming close to the ground upon his staff. With out hesitation he began reciting a spell's incantation.

"_Ras tel Ma scir Magister, Eleven Spirits of Wind, Become a seal and bind my Enemy!"_ As he finished he thrust out his right arm, planted his feet firmly on the ground and shouted. _"Arrows of Wind!" _From the teens finger tips, eleven arrows of light shot towards the vampire.

The vampire was a bit surprised but responded none-the-less. She tossed out a small vial filled with a blue liquid and whispered _"Reflectio"_

With the sound of ice shattering, a small reflective barrier appeared in front of the vampire. Resounding 'thumps' were heard as the arrows of light impacted off the shield. After the explosions were over, it was revealed that a single arrow had pierced the barrier. A very small crater in the gravel indicated where it had landed. Said crater was right in front of the vampire. Negi smirked in mild triumph.

"That was surprising, such powerful magic." The vampire teased in her sweet voice as she cast off her hat.

Negi finally saw the culprit's face. "Evangeline A.K. McDowell. I should have figured as much."

"It's the start of term, so let's exchange the formalities shall we sensei? Or should I say Negi Springfield?" Evangeline purred out, temptation on her lips. "To be able to pierce my defence with a basic attack, just as one would expect from that man's son."

"And for you to attack innocent people, just what I would expect from the 'Undying Mage'." Negi shot back as he cradled Nodoka.

"Ahh, you've heard of me. Am I supposed to feel honoured?"

"We'll see." Negi finished. He gently laid Nodoka down so that he could fight freely. Almost immediately after she was out of his grasp, he began muttering the very same spell that he wanted to use on his assistant. The vampire on the other hand was preparing a simple freezing solution using catalysts.

Negi finished first. _"Lance of Lightning!" _he called out with his staff outstretched. True to its name, the spell called forth a powerful bolt of lightning from the tip of the staff.

Evangeline barely missed being struck by lightning. Because of having to dodge, she dropped her catalyst and thus chose flight over fight, literally.

Negi was not about to let her get away. He stepped on the tail of his staff and kicked off, leaving a slight ripple in his wake. Very soon, he caught sight of Evangeline flying with the use of her cape. The vampire was above the dormitories when Negi caught her off guard with the use of a disarming spell.

Evangeline landed softly on the dormitory roof, with Negi landing swiftly soon after. Levelling his staff at her, he started.

"I win. Now tell me, why are you doing this?" He demanded, anger seeping in.

"You've won?" she began her obviously 'evil' laugh. "Why don't you try doing some of your magic then?" Evangeline threatened whilst another figure landed harshly behind her, eyes glowing.

'She has an accomplice? Screw it.' Negi thought as he automatically recited the lines for his 'Arrows of Wind'. He didn't get far, because the new girl raced to his front, and flicked his forehead, causing him to stop the spell.

"Allow me to introduce you to my 'Partner'. Third year, Seat Number ten, Chachamaru Karakuri." Eva announced, the girl being announced simply bowed. Negi, for one, nearly had a panic attack. He was supposed to have the upper hand, but now that Evangeline had a partner, it was all over. Slowly he began to back away. Before he knew it, he was at the building's edge.

Negi was about to just take a leap of faith and hopefully fly away. Chachamaru was closing in, orders from Evangeline. When she was halfway, she was intercepted by a deep red blur that was accompanied by a dash of yellow.

Standing there, holding Chachamaru back was Naruto.

Chachamaru was just as shocked as Negi, although she couldn't show it. She simply dismissed he was an ordinary person, one with strange taste in clothes. But it appears that her calculations were drastically incorrect for a number of reasons. One, he had just leapt at least seven stories high. Two, he was slowly but surely pushing her back. Three, his eyes were red with slits for pupils, his canines were longer and his fingernails had lengthened into claws.

With a mighty push, Naruto shoved Chachamaru backwards into Evangeline, who by some play of fate had bitten her tongue when she impacted. Without wanting to judge just how powerful the blonde was, Eva and Chachamaru retreated.

Negi was thankful, but seething with shame. He wasn't able to defeat even a severely weakened Evangeline, and to further rub it in, Naruto stepped in. The dean probably saw it as an insurance policy or something, but it wasn't doing anything to help Negi's personal pride. And yet, the event that just happened opened his eyes. He needed a battle partner, and there was a perfectly capable one right in front of him, then there was also Asuna, she was a strong girl not to mention he had developed a soft spot for the girl. Still she was a student, he couldn't get her involved. That only left one option.

Negi swallowed his pride and faced Naruto, who had reverted back to normal.

"Naruto." He started shakily. "You know about magic, and you seem to be a good person in a fight. Would you like to be my battle partner?" Negi almost rushed the question out, but he had managed to keep calm.

"As long as you don't want me to do a goddamn contract, then I don't mind." Naruto replied with a wary look. Negi let out a nervous laugh of relief.

"Deal, just help out with Eva and anyone else who would harm the students." He held out his hand to the blonde. Naruto took the hand and shook it firmly, with a grin on his face.

* * *

AN: finally, ok so the last few parts are a bit rushed, I'm just a bit tired.

So yeah, Naruto can use the initial Jinchuuriki stage at will. And really it's much better story wise than having him able to use two or so tails. That's just unrealistic, since he didn't really have Jiraiya's three year training trip.

Also I hope I can get better at humour, I personally suck at it, not to mention one of Negima's main foundations is humour. Next to the perverseness of course.

So, Until next time Krimzon-8 out.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 9: Partner Dilemma

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demonic talk"**

'**Demonic Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

It was the day after the confrontation with Evangeline, and so far Negi was still reeling from the revelation of the previous night. The vampire was right, he did need a partner. So far there were two candidates, Asuna and Naruto. Asuna already knew about magic, plus she was better than most of her classmates in physical activities, so she was almost perfect for it. Naruto on the other hand, is exceptional even without the Pactio improvements. The only problem was that Naruto was a guy, and Negi really didn't want to give his first kiss to another male. Besides he did make a pledge when he learned about contracts for the first time. If he did kiss a guy for the benefits, he would burn his tongue out of shame.

Truth be told, he wasn't really afraid of Evangeline. He rather feared Chachamaru on the other hand. Since the green-haired girl was the 'Partner', she could do more damage to him than he could to her. To hopefully fix this dilemma, Negi recruited Naruto as an unofficial partner, no pactio just defence when he needs it.

At the moment, Negi was a little hesitant when getting ready. If Chachamaru attacked without Naruto around, the teenage English teacher was royally screwed. He shook his head to clear it of any bad thoughts. They were going to be in school, what could happen?

* * *

When Negi arrived, almost everyone was in their chairs. Among the first things he noticed was that Evangeline wasn't present, again. For a moment he was caught off guard when Chachamaru answered his silent question.

"Master came to school, she is simply skipping class." The effect it had on Negi was immense to say the least. The teen nearly pissed himself. While he muttered quiet thanks, he discreetly moved away.

While she watched her sensei move away, Chachamaru headed for her seat. After the battle, Evangeline went into a rage of sorts, rambling on about how easily she could have missed Naruto's obvious power. The thought of Naruto inadvertently pulled up a memory file from the previous night. His eyes were completely different. They were red, and the pupils were slitted. The irises could be explained by genetics, but the slits could not. All this thought processing did was increasing her curiosity of her blonde teacher. As she took her seat, the servos that controlled her mouth twitched into a very small smile.

After home period, the lesson officially started. Negi was still uncomfortable with Chachamaru still present, although when he glanced at her, he saw that she wasn't focused on him, rather staring into space. 'At least she isn't looking at me.' He thought with a slight smile. Although, he was thinking of ways to beat Evangeline, should they fight again. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't hear one of his students say that she was done reading until she said it five times.

"Oh sorry, Ako-san. Still a bit tired." He actually was a bit tired, but at least he didn't mention battling evil vampires. "Actually… I know this is sudden, but if you were to choose a partner, you wouldn't go for your teacher right?"

The class rep was among the first to respond to the question. She practically bounced up and down shouting 'I would, I would!' Now, Ako was one of the few girls who wasn't infatuated with her sensei at the moment, rather, she was among the 'Naruto lovers', it didn't stop her from blushing like mad though. She somehow managed to stop sputtering to form a coherent sentence.

"Not me, no. I've got someone else in mind." She said, biting her lip and she sat down. Before she could breathe out a sigh of relief, Haruna piped in with her patented 'gossip spreading tone.'

"'Someone else', you mean Naruto-sensei."

Pretty soon, Ako was shaking with fear as she felt three piercing gazes bore holes into her. One from her left, a second from directly in front of her, and the final one from the rear of the class. True, no one had actually gotten their claws into Naruto, but they could feel their time to strike approaching.

Asakura snapped out of it first, she felt a slight pity for her teacher and was in the mood for a bit of teasing. In a flash, she was in front of Negi whispering.

"I've got some welcome news for you, Negi-sensei. With our class being so spaced out, I'd say that you could make a girlfriend out of about seventeen or eighteen of them. Trust me, I did research."

Of course Negi's response was incoherent babblings of denial. It took a little while, but he did regain his composure enough to address the class.

"Sorry girls, that was completely inappropriate of me. It had nothing to do with the lesson." He spoke as he walked towards the door. "You girls can have the rest of the period off, I think I still need some sleep." Negi got a little hasty about leaving the room, so much so that he bumped his head on the half-opened door. The last thing the girls heard of him was a drawn out, depressed sigh.

If he had stayed a few moments longer, he would have heard Asuna go after him, explaining to girls that he was having some trouble finding a 'partner'. And of course, the girls took it completely the wrong way.

It seemed to most of them, that this news confirmed the rumours that they had heard. Before they carried out their plant to cheer Negi up however, Sakurako put her two cents in.

"So if Negi-sensei is a prince, then what does that make Naruto-sensei?"

And so all the people in the, 'Loves Naruto' section of the class, started rumouring among themselves. In no time at all, they had come up with a possibility that was just as inflated as Negi's.

* * *

With the rest of the day off, Naruto had nothing to do; the best that he could come up with was simply walking around campus. He soon found himself lost amongst the fairly large town. Just before he rounded a corner, a stab of pain exploded from his back. Manoeuvring his hands to the source of pain, Naruto's fingers brushed against a feather-tipped stub. He gripped the stub and pulled it free, allowing a fresh wave of mild pain wash over him. Upon closer inspection, the object was a dart. Very similar to the ones that he used during stealth missions, back when he was a Konoha ninja. Only after discarding the dart, did he begin to feel drowsy and sluggish.

The drug moved quickly through his system, Naruto fought to keep himself awake. Stumbling around the corner, he misplaced his foot and slipped onto the roadside. The sudden shock forced him to close his eyes on instinct. Once they were shut, did he realise that it was too much work to bring them back open. Within moments, he fell into unconsciousness.

In a moment's notice, the one who fired the dart leapt down with another and picked up the knocked-out blonde. They would have to move fast in order to reach the rendezvous in time.

* * *

At the same time, on the other side of the campus, Negi was animatedly chatting to Asuna about what had happened on the roof the previous night.

"So that's when Chachamaru began moving towards me on Eva's orders. But Naruto-san stopped her. With the flicks she gave, I'm amazed that he could hold his own against her."

"Seriously? Eva-chan's that scary? Hard to believe that she attacked Makie."

"I'm not making this up Asuna-san, but thankfully Naruto-san has offered to help."

"Well, what about me? I can also hold my own against Chacha. Besides, I still owe you one from that fall in Library Island. Not to mention that Magic seems to not work on me." Asuna didn't really want to be left out, especially after what happened to her friends.

"I'm sure that you can, it's just that I don't want anyone else to get hurt, except for Evangeline, she's gonna pay." Negi countered with an edge in his voice.

"Why don't we just try one of those pactio things? I mean, if we did that then I wouldn't get hurt right?" She suggested, with a twinge of blush dusting her features.

"Possibly, but there's no need for that at the moment. Evangeline won't be able to do anything until the next full moon. F-" He was cut off by someone placing a bag over his head and dashing off before Asuna could even notice.

The next thing he knew, Negi had most of his clothes stripped off forcefully and was pushed into warm water. Emerging, the first words to come out of his mouth were "The hell- Why am I in the bath house?"

A splash was heard to his right, and lying there, face-up in the water was Naruto in basically nothing but his boxers. Negi waded out to him and shook his shoulder. The blonde was out and barely stirring. As soon as the blonde's eyes opened, a rather husky female voice called out to him.

"Negi-sensei!" The call was accompanied by several splashes.

Turning around, Negi was greeted by quite an amount of female flesh on display for him. Every girl from class 3-A was there, all dressed in bathing suits, with some that were more revealing than others.

The steadily rising Naruto was soon dragged off by four or five girls to a separate corner of the baths which was marked by a banner reading 'Naruto-sensei's 'Private' area'. As soon as the blonde actually saw it, he immediately woke up and started struggling to get free. Negi was completely unable to help, after all the girls were practically fighting over who got to wash which part of his body. Ayaka, Naruto noticed, was discretely making him drink sake. The full blown, alcoholic kind.

The Jinchuuriki was completely baffled as to how his Imouto-chan actually got her hands on a few dozen bottles of sake. He would have to ask later, because for now the girls were pushing parts of their bodies onto him. Before anyone else could, Sakurako sat on his lap and looped her legs around his waist, making it all but impossible to escape. Without missing a beat, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself close, essentially making her breasts press up against his chest.

The other girls around them silently admired Sakurako's quick thinking and impulsiveness, yet at the same time they were a little green-eyed with envy. Realising her chance, Kaede grabbed hold of Naruto's shoulders from behind and pushed her own large breasts onto his back. She considered her breasts to be one of her most outstanding features, other than her amazing information gathering ability. Naturally she was proud of how her body developed; amongst the class she had the third largest breasts. In front of her in size were Chizuru Naba and Mana Tatsumiya. Both of them were not present in the baths.

Naruto was extremely uncomfortable, not only was there a half-naked girl coiled around him; there was another pressing their breasts on to his back. Needless to say, 'Little Naruto' was getting a bit too excited. He racked his brain for a solution to keep _that_ particular appendage down, lest he be labelled as a pervert for a long time. Seeing no other way, he cut off the chakra flow to his groin, effectively calming 'Little Naruto'. Even though he did stop that particular action, the girls didn't stop whatever they were doing.

Seeing that Naruto wasn't being affected by ordinary methods, the girls doubled their efforts to get some kind of reaction from the blonde. Well most of the girls did, Sakurako was content with sitting in his lap with her head on his shoulder. Kaede did something a bit more risqué. Moving her head to one side of Naruto's neck and she slowly leaned in and licked it sensually, his taste and scent completely overwhelmed her two respective senses. Before anyone else could make their move, a series of shrieks from the other side of the bath startled them all.

Naruto used this quick distraction to get the girls off him, and to get himself out of the water. A glance at how Negi was doing was almost enough for him to start bleeding from his nose. All the girls on Negi's side were completely stripped of their bathing suits, with most of them being scattered around the area. Naruto first accused Negi of stripping the girls. That was until he caught sight of something moving in and out of the water at very high speeds. With each splash it made, another article of clothing was lost on some poor girl. As of yet, the girls on his side had not been stripped.

Luckily, before any more girls became naked in front of two adolescent males, Asuna burst into the room. Just as the culprit sprung towards its new prey, Asuna brought a wash basin down upon its head, knocking the thing into blissful unconsciousness, although it did get a few of her blouse's buttons undone. The stripper was soon revealed as a white ermine, one that Negi seemed to recognise. Upon recognising the ermine, the teenage redhead picked it up and walked towards the change rooms. Naruto really didn't want to be left behind in this mess, so he quickly tagged along. The girls of 3-A were left along to gather up their remaining bits of clothing and wash themselves.

* * *

A while after the calamity that happened in the bath house, Negi, Naruto and Asuna were all holed up in the same room. Namely the one that Negi shared with Konoka and Asuna. As one would assume, the two guys were talking. Although little about it had anything to do with what they experienced in the baths. They were discussing the little ermine that decided to strip the girls. Naruto wanted to get rid of the strange animal, Negi wanted to keep it around, even with its perverted habits and Asuna was leaning towards the blonde's argument. Naruto was about to win, when the little thing started talking and in doing so, scared the living daylights out of Asuna. Naruto wasn't really fazed; after all he's seen a massive talking toad battle with a huge tanuki made of sand.

Without waiting for a signal or anything really, the little talking ermine introduced itself as 'Albel Chamomile' or 'Chamo' for short and started recounting a tale of when he first met Negi. Apparently he was caught in a rabbit trap, and Negi rescued him, even if he got reprimanded for it. Ever since then the little ermine has been looking for a chance to repay the kid. And since Negi hasn't found a partner yet, he thought that it might be good to help him out and also claiming that his big sister sent him to do so. That was Chamo's excuse for stripping the girls, to see if they were partner worthy.

'Bullshit, just trying to sneak a peak at the girl's goods.' Naruto thought to himself.

"Well I was thinking of looking for one, but I don't really need to, thanks to Naruto-san there." a nervous Negi explained.

A now confused Chamo, looked strangely at the blonde, then back to Negi and repeated it quite a few times, trying to connect dots that were never there to begin with. "Uhh, so you two did the whole pactio thing with each other?" the white ermine asked rather awkwardly, flailing his paws about as if to explain something.

Naruto was taking a sip of water at the moment and Negi was nibbling on a cracker and when Chamo asked, they both started to choke and Asuna actually didn't understand what was going on. Naruto was the first to recover, placing the now empty glass of water down, he snatched up the little critter in his now clawed hand. The burning red eyes really betrayed just how angry he felt at the moment, which was to say, he wanted to tie the little thing up in a burlap sack, toss it into a river for a week, retrieve it and place it in a magician's sword box, and if he survived that, he would somehow henge the little bastard into a full sized Naruto and send him back to his world so that the villagers could have their revenge.

"**What are you implying by that!"** Naruto shouted, showing off his elongated canine teeth. That alone was enough for Chamo to convince him that coming to Mahora Academy was a complete mistake tenfold. It almost made both red heads faint and made them vow to never intentionally piss off the blonde…ever.

Through his nearly crushed neck, the little ermine managed to squeak out an answer. "I was just asking." Naruto really couldn't hear, so he let the little thing have _some_ air. "I take it that you didn't. Wouldn't think so, you're not like that are you Aniki?"

The blonde figured that just there was the closest he was ever going to get to an apology from the rodent. He let it slide, just that once however. Naruto took a deep breath and cleared his mind; it wouldn't do any good to stay red-eyed and clawed.

"N-No Chamo, we never did the pactio, and we pretty much never want to." Negi supplied with a shiver, he was still a bit scared from Naruto's appearance.

"Uh? Oh that! Ya do know that there is another way to do pactios…right?" All three of the room's humans shared the same expression. 'Wha?' 'Huh?' and 'Eh?' from Negi, Asuna and Naruto respectively.

"Yeah, you can just mix each other's blood. Simply shake hands with bleeding cuts on them inside the magic circle and Bam! Pactio complete."

"Seriously? The dean left that one out." Naruto said incredulously.

"I can't believe I forgot." Mumbled Negi.

"What's going on? I lost track when Naruto-sensei became all scary." Asuna deadpanned, causing all the males to look at her.

The dumbfounded girl was saved when Konoka burst in wearing nothing but a towel that barely concealed her figure. Claiming that there were quite a few voices from the room, when she saw Naruto she basically nodded in understanding. Then she caught sight of Chamo, Konoka immediately embraced the ermine and hugged him to her chest, where he was quite happy to be. Following that she took him outside and announced to everyone that Negi had a pet. The girls from all over came streaming out to get a chance to pet the ermine.

In the following commotion, Naruto left for his dorm room. He needed to rest; there was just too much information to process for one day.

When the girls finally relinquished the ermine, who really didn't want to be taken away from the ladies, Negi thought out loud about writing a letter back to his sister. When Chamo heard that, he immediately jumped into action, practically shouting that he had indeed found the perfect partner for him. Negi was hesitant, but he caved in. He placed the class roster down and Chamo jumped onto a random girl, saying that she was the one. When Asuna questioned his choice, he quickly blamed it on his 'Special Ermine Powers.'

Asuna was rather suspicious, since the girl that Chamo had pointed out was none other than Nodoka Miyazaki, the girl that was incredibly shy of any male, no matter what age or appearance. Apparently, Negi was the only person of the opposite sex that she had opened up to. She wanted to say something against the claim, yet she couldn't. Negi was too happy for her to ruin it. With a sigh she let it go. It was at that particular time that her teacher decided to take a walk in the night. As he closed the door, Asuna noticed a familiar letter in the mailbox. It was airmail, and it was addressed to Negi. 'Probably a letter from his sister.' She thought and unknowingly said it out loud.

Chamo heard this and quickly snatched the letter from her, saying that he would take it to Negi. Before Asuna could reply, the ermine had run around the corner and disappeared from site.

Chamo, now safely out of sight, opened the letter and read through it. As he finished reading it, he quickly scrunched it up and threw it into a nearby garbage bin. Only one thought went through his mind at the time. 'I need to move fast.'

* * *

At the end of the next day, Nodoka Miyazaki walked calmly towards the shoe lockers; she had finished her rounds to Library Island. Along the way, all she had on her mind was Negi Springfield. All throughout the lesson, she focused solely on Negi. It seemed true that he was looking for a partner. Yet she was worried that he had already picked a different girl over her. So far there were only two people she had talked to about it, one being Negi's own roommate Asuna Kagurazaka. Asuna had waved off Nodoka's concern, stating that 'Negi's too worried about his job to care about girls at the moment.' She also brushed off the rumour of him looking for a partner, just confirming that it was only partly true.

Still, Nodoka's worry stuck in her mind. That was until she opened her shoe locker. Falling out from the locker was a letter, one that was apparently from Negi. It took a moment for her to get over the shock and actually open said letter. After she had finished reading the letter from her crush, she felt like she was on cloud nine. In the letter, Negi had requested her presence behind the dormitory building after school. What really caught her attention was the final sentence, 'Please be my Partner.' She felt so happy that she could just die right there and not have any regrets. Well not entirely, she'd first have to seal the deal, and then she might be able to die happily. Without further motivation, she hurriedly put on her shoes and went to the dorms as fast as she could.

* * *

Negi had finished his classes for the day and was walking home. Or he was, until Chamo interrupted his blissfully ignorant walking. Really, he was only thinking of ways to get Evangeline to stop skipping his classes.

Chamo seemingly ran up to Negi with urgent news, since he was basically flailing about and shouting to the teenage teacher. Negi quickly silenced him and Chamo quietly told him that Nodoka was captured behind the dormitory building. Fearing another attack from Evangeline, Negi quickly mounted his staff and flew towards the building with haste.

Negi reached the dormitories within a few minutes. After setting down, he quickly moved around the building, only to come face to face with an unharmed Nodoka wearing a sun dress. Negi quickly caught onto the little plot, but he couldn't confront Chamo about it with Miyazaki around, so instead he decided to play along. Replacing his concerned expression with a happy one, he approached the purple haired girl.

"Nodoka-chan, you're here" He started with a wink. "You showed up after all."

"S-sensei, are you sure you want me to be your partner?" Nodoka replied while nervously holding her arm. "It seems that ever since you came here, you've always saved me from danger. I want to return the favour, if you ask anything of my, I shall comply with the best of my ability."

What ever Negi was expecting, it wasn't that. She wanted to repay the favour by doing what ever he wanted? He knew that a lot of guys who would commit mass murder to be in his shoes, but he wasn't that kind of person. Negi doesn't use people; he doesn't treat women like trash. Yet it seemed that his white furry companion didn't agree. Chamo jumped from Negi shoulder and started drawing something on the ground in chalk. Negi wasn't even sure where he had gotten chalk. The little ermine was finished in a flash.

Light erupted from the seal and embraced the two teens. The light was strangely warm and it made both of their hearts beat faster and faster. Chamo tried to explain what he was doing, even if it was unnecessary. Near the end, the ermine pushed pressured Negi into trying to make him kiss the girl. Nodoka over heard the squabble between the ermine and her teacher and stated that she do it.

* * *

Naruto was making his way back to the dorm building via roof hopping. He was actually in a race against Kaede, but he didn't really care. Whilst in the middle of a leap, he spotted Negi flying rather hurriedly toward the dormitories. Not many things got his co worker to fly seriously. Sensing that something was amiss, Naruto increased his pace.

Upon arriving there, Naruto spotted a glowing circle with Negi and Nodoka inside it's perimeter…standing rather close. The blonde was about to simply leave, but then he saw the ermine, Chamo, waving flags with Negi and Nodoka's faces on them. The little rat was cheering them on. He knew that thing was up to no good.

Leaping down and landing softly behind Chamo, Naruto prepared to lunge at him, only to have another person do it as well. Asuna held onto the ermines head while Naruto seized the legs.

As Chamo lost concentration, the spell was broken. Nodoka fainted from the magical over load, while Negi kept his cool. After giving the knocked out girl some room, he turned to his friends. What he saw was rather scary. Naruto and Asuna were stretching Chamo to his limits, with him yelling in pain. When both saw Negi's face, they dropped the white critter.

Asuna quickly held out a crumpled letter out to Negi, as proof to Chamo's lie. Finishing her task, she went over to the library girl to keep her company. Naruto never took his eye off the ermine.

Said ermine, quickly went about explaining things, saying that he did all of it for his sister back in Wales. Naruto noticed that Chamo was indeed lying, and so did Asuna. But Negi bought the lie, hell he was even teary eyed by the end.

'He seriously can't tell how obvious that lie is? How did he even become a teacher?' Naruto questioned in his mind.

Not wanting to see the whole mushy-manly-making-up between Negi and Chamo, fearing that it would scar his memory like it did when Lee and Gai did it, Naruto sighed and walked inside the dorms, leaving Nodoka in the care of the others.

* * *

By the time Nodoka woke, she was convinced that everything that just happened was a dream. She slowly began trudging back to the dormitories disappointed.

* * *

AN: Ok, a week late…yeah, sorry. I've just been having so much fun with the new games I bought.

Yet again the last part was a bit hurried, but then at the same time so was I.

I had another shot at humour, and a bit of Chachamaru's developing feelings. Hopefully next time I will have the battle on the bridge that you have all been waiting for.

So until next time, Krimzon-8 out.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 10: Blackout

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demonic talk"**

'**Demonic Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

After a lot of reprimand and questioning from Asuna, Chamo promised to never try and make a pactio without Negi's permission; although he was allowed to suggest when to make them. Negi felt a little bad about leaving Nodoka to think that it was just a dream, but he had to do what he could to keep his magic a secret. At the same time however, he was glad that she didn't take his first kiss. The teacher was leaning towards giving it to his room mate.

Currently it was the day following the 'Pactio incident' as Negi called it. The morning started with Asuna waking up and finding that Chamo decided to steal the girl's underwear and sleep in it. In five seconds she was chasing the ermine around the dorm room with a broom. Konoka spent the rest of the morning trying to calm her down by reasoning that Chamo was just and animal and he probably likes the feeling of the cloth.

While Negi watched the conversation between the two, he was wondering just how Konoka could be so upbeat about having a little rodent going through your underwear and leaving its fur covering all of it. 'Women, I'll never understand them.' He stated in his mind.

When the time for the morning rush came, the two girls were still going at it. As he passed students in his class he happily greeted them. As they approached the shoe lockers, Negi started to take a little caution in his surroundings, keeping an eye out for Evangeline and Chachamaru. This was picked up on from the ermine on his shoulder.

"Aniki, why were you looking around so much just then?" the creature asked. Negi tried to hastily wave it off, but the ermine wasn't having it. "Come on, what are ya so depressed about? Talk to me, Aniki." Finally, Negi gave into Chamo's demands.

"There's actually, kind of a problem child in my class." He tried to continue, but he was interrupted.

"Good morning Negi-sensei." Came a curt, yet haughty voice. "I guess that you're just going to let me skip class again? Heh, it's been fun ever since you became a teacher."

"Evangeline-san, Chachamaru-san." Negi exclaimed in mild surprise. Quickly he reached for his staff that was slung over his shoulder. Before he could do anything else, Evangeline held up a hand, signalling that she didn't want to fight.

"Hold it," she demanded. "Do you really think that you stand a chance against me? I think it would be better if you just behaved yourself while we were both in school don't you think?" Evangeline continued in her condescending tone, whilst turning to walk away.

She then took her leave from her teacher, who idly stood by as she continued to the place she liked to sleep. As soon as she was out of ear-shot, Chamo burst out in anger.

"Who does she think she is! Let me give her a piece of my mind, Aniki!" the ermine ranted.

'I'll give him reckon he'll instantly change his mind if I tell him that Eva's a vampire.' Negi thought to himself.

"Chamo, she's a vampire. And a Shinso, to boot." He finally told him. Chamo regretted his choice of words and immediately started walking away, hat on his head and suitcase in hand.

"Well, good luck, Aniki, you'll need it" he called out over his shoulder. The ermine suddenly froze as Asuna stood in his tail rather harshly.

"If it weren't for Naruto-san, I would have been sucked dry and she'd be roaming the world doing what ever she wanted." Negi said solemnly. "And the fact that she has a partner doesn't help anything either."

"Damn a Shinso, you've got the devil's luck Aniki, I'll say that much."

"Her magic is weak at the moment, luckily, I've heard that she's gonna behave herself until the next full moon." Asuna put in, giving Negi a little breathing room.

"Hoho, this is perfect Ane-san! I've got a plan that is essentially flawless!" Chamo proclaimed with a twinkle in his eye. Both red-heads shared a look, whatever he meant it was likely something perverted. "If Ane-san and Aniki make a provisional contract, you two could team up and take one of them out while they're alone."

Immediately the two flushed bright red. Neither would ever look at each other the same way again. Negi shot the ermine a 'What the hell were you thinking?' look. Asuna nervously looked away embarrassed at the very idea. To answer Negi's inquisitive look, Chamo tried to justify his suggestion.

"I've seen Ane-san's physical ability; she'd make a great partner. It's either this or the blood thing with Naruto, which I might add, is rather painful." He stated, knowing that Negi had his back up against the wall.

"But ganging up… isn't that a bit unfair?" The teacher put in, a hint of pity in his voice.

"Nothing is unfair in battle! They ganged up on you didn't they? An eye for an eye! Show no mercy!" Chamo continued to rant.

"I…I'm not going through this, isn't this what you tried with Honya-chan yesterday? With the kissing and stuff?" Asuna meekly asked.

"Hoho, so Ane-chan is in her third year of middle school already, hasn't had her first kiss yet?" Asuna practically blanched at the very mention of her private life. "Oh well, that was rude of me to ask. If she refuses there's nothing I can do about it." With her pride suddenly wounded, Asuna tried to rectify her slip.

"W-What are you saying, a kiss is nothing to me, you know. It's just that why do I have to do it?"

"You don't have to, Asuna-san," Negi assured. "I've already got Naruto-san on my side and that's more than enough. But I trust that you'll keep this to yourself."

"Wait, you can't do this all by yourself!"

* * *

By the time that Negi and Asuna arrived, Naruto had taken the liberty of marking the roll. Negi plopped himself onto his chair and settled in for another day of admiring gazes and poor English attempts.

During the actual lesson, Naruto looked out the window, mulling over something. Aside from still being traumatized from the previous day's molesting, he was more worried about Evangeline and how he could counter her spells. During his observation of her and Negi's fight, he could easily be worried if she had any particularly destructive spells. Anything like Negi's lightning and he would effectively be screwed. From what it did to the trees in its way, it made Kakashi's Lightning Blade look like a measly D rank jutsu. And if Sasuke's Chidori could blast through a person's chest, than Negi's attack would rip someone limb from limb.

From what he could observe, Evangeline seemed to favour Ice. Similar to Haku, but much more deadly. He bet that if the mini vampire felt like it, she could freeze a person solid. Sure the Kyuubi's chakra could help in a pinch, but it still wouldn't save him. For the first time since he arrived, Naruto felt a chill run down his spine. If there were mages more powerful than Negi, he would have to keep on his toes and move faster than he ever has. Naruto was shaken out of his thoughts when the bell sounded, signalling the end of the period. Looking back over the classroom, something caught his eye. Or rather someone.

Chachamaru had her optics a bit too trained on Naruto-senpai when the bell sounded. It took an entire three seconds for her to re-focus on something else. Usually that would mean nothing to a human, but for an artificial intelligence, it was good as three days. Nearing the end of said three seconds, the target of her focus, caught a glimpse of her staring. As hurriedly as her servos allowed, Chachamaru packed her things and raced out the door. When she exited, she felt quite a bit of power rushing to her cheeks, causing them to exude heat and turn slightly red. Without further delay, she quickly walked to the stairs to see her master.

Naruto did indeed see Chachamaru looking. And on her way out, he could swear that there was a blush plastered on her face. Shaking the slightly strange feeling off, he gathered his own things and headed out with Negi, who asked a rather strange request of the blond.

* * *

After school had finished for the day, Evangeline found herself wondering around the grounds with Chachamaru, Or as far as she was concerned, her latest puppet and only protection until a full moon passed or the barrier lifted.

Just when she thought that nobody could interrupt or overhear them talking about their plans, Takamichi walked up from behind. He promptly asked her to accompany him to the principle's office, which was hardly a surprise, considering the events over the last her days. Instructing Chachamaru that she could do what ever she wanted for the rest of the evening, Eva set off with Takamichi, who started messing with her like an older brother would with their little sister.

Once Chachamaru lost sight of her master, she silently wished her good luck and left.

Half an hour later, Chachamaru emerged from a local convenience store carrying a plastic bag full of milk and cat food. Not far behind her, two figures hid in the shadows, waiting and watching.

A few minutes later, Chachamaru came across a crying little girl who was worried over losing her balloon. Looking up into the nearby trees, Chachamaru soon spotted the helium filled piece of rubber. Wanting to help the child, she engaged her thrusters, much to the shock of said little girl. Chachamaru swiftly pulled the balloon out of the tree and handed it to the once distressed girl, who thanked her thoroughly.

Both figures in hiding were rather shocked at this. Not only at the act of kindness, but the fact that the teenage girl could fly caused both to gape and whisper among each other. When neither could come up with a reasonable explanation, a third presence suggested that Chachamaru was an artificial construct. More often referred to as a Robot. When the third pointed out the obvious give away features, the first two felt rather stupid for not noticing earlier. Never the less, they continued their investigation.

Another fifteen minutes later and Chachamaru had accomplished two more good natured deeds. The first involved helping an elderly woman climbing some stairs; the second was saving a kitten from a river.

The three in the shadows had no doubts that the robot girl was a very good person. Well two of them were, the third tried to convince them otherwise, claiming that it might be a trap.

Reasonably late into the afternoon, Chachamaru changed course, heading towards an abandoned church. Curious the three followed. Once the robot girl was in the courtyard, she laid out a bowl and cracked open the cat food. As she was emptying the cans, cats of all sizes came out and began feasting. Chachamaru placed another bowl and poured the milk into it, letting the felines drink. While she watched, she kept a content smile on her lips.

Just around the corner, two of the three were hesitant to execute their plan now. But when the first hesitated, the third spoke up.

"She's a threat, if we eliminate her now it'll save a lot of trouble in the future." The first began to object, but was quickly silenced. "You know what must be done." Swallowing, he stepped out of the cover and confronted Chachamaru, with the second following silently.

Out of the corner of her optics, Chachamaru saw two people emerge and take firm stances. She turned to get a better look at her challengers and paused slightly at who they were.

"Negi-sensei, Naruto-senpai, it seems that I left my guard down. But I shall be your opponent."

"Chachamaru-san, do yourself a favour and stop targeting me. If not I shall have no choice but to respond with force." Negi replied with force as he readied his staff. At his words, Naruto flinched.

'He never mentioned violence when he asked me about this.' Naruto thought feeling a sense of betrayal. 'Never the less, I will distract her, but if he tries anything lethal, I will step in.'

"I am unable to comply, my Master's orders are absolute."

"Naruto, go I'll back you up." Negi whispered to the blonde.

Naruto gathered the chakra in his legs and pounced towards Chachamaru. The robot held her position and grappled with Naruto as he landed. For a moment, the two were in stalemate, both applying the same force to the other. The two pushed off each other, and Naruto charged again. As they reached one another, both launched a flick to the other's forehead. Naruto's landed first, placing a very shallow dent in her plating. Chachamaru's readings were off the charts, there was no way that Naruto could be that fast or strong naturally.

Naruto on the other hand, could hear something that sounded like whispering that was getting louder and louder. Quickly spinning his head towards the origin if the noise, his eyes widened. Negi was chanting a spell, Naruto couldn't tell, but what ever it was there was a good amount of harmful intent behind it. Another sound stuck his ears, although from the other direction.

THWUMP! Chachamaru shot her arm directly at Naruto, the fingers curled into a fist. To her surprise, Naruto caught the flying arm and yanked on it, making the wire that connected the limb to her body, become taught. She was suddenly pulled off her feet and caught by Naruto. It was only after that she had hit the ground did she notice that Negi was casting a spell. Before she could even react, the red-headed teacher let the spell loose.

From Negi's fingertips, eleven bolts of light shot forward towards the prone Chachamaru, who had no chance to escape. Silently, the robotic girl began to wish farewell to her friends and master. Just before the bolts hit, Negi let a smirk cross his features.

Chachamaru closed her eyes and waited for pain, oblivion, anything. She heard the bolts exploding, but she felt no pain, nor sensed anything misplaced. Carefully, she cracked her eyes open. What she saw made her stop drawing breath. Standing over her was Naruto, his clothes ripped in various places. Arms placed in a bracing position that shielded his face. Legs tensed from the weight of the assault. A shallow crater was formed at the very edges of his position.

Slowly and shakily, Naruto loosened his stance. Negi was slightly shaken, but Chamo the ermine urged him on, willing that he cast another spell and be rid of Chachamaru. Negi wilfully complied, and started chanting a little faster for something that was much longer. Naruto on the other hand heard him mutter "Rai" once or twice during the chant, and three times as fast went through some hand signs for a powerful wind jutsu.

Negi finished the chant in five seconds flat, but Naruto was slightly faster. The red-head teacher pointed the head of his staff at the still prone Chachamaru. Naruto saw this and swung his left arm down with his hand in a bladed position.

CRACK! The lightning bolt leaped from the staff, only to suddenly change direction barely a foot from Chachamaru. The bolt curved down at a sharp angle and straight into the ground, where the electrical energy dispersed. Standing barely to the side of the crater was Naruto with his arm outstretched and pointing down.

Feeling that there was going to be a heated argument very soon, Chachamaru ignited her thrusters and fled. While she flew, her mind wandered as to why Naruto would defend her. It made no logical sense, she was mutual enemy. Perhaps she would have to report this to Evangeline.

* * *

"Why the hell did you get in the way!" shouted Negi. "Because of you, she got away!"

"Did you forget that she was still a student of yours?" Naruto retorted. That statement gave Negi pause.

"But, she still works for Evangeline. She's still an enemy."

"That may be, but you still need to show enemies mercy." Naruto countered. "Your first priority should be the safety of the students. You were blindly following that rat's commands!" He pointed at Chamo. "The easiest way isn't always the morally correct choice." He finished softly.

Naruto took his leave while Negi contemplated Naruto's words. It was true; he was almost consumed by his anger. This train of thought took him on a trip down memory lane, to where he saw his village burn under the attack of demons. Almost everyone he knew was petrified. He swore on that day that he would take revenge someday.

'I need to let go, free myself from anger and it shall free me. It shall take time, but I will try.' He mulled over. Without another word or thought, he straightened himself up and left.

* * *

The next day was a holiday. So naturally Naruto woke up late and he found himself deciding whether or not to take Sakurako out for the day. It wasn't really his decision to be in that position. The girl cornered him and asked him out for the day.

Sakurako wanted to hang out in Harajuku again, or just simply walk around the campus having a normal date.

Not very long into the walk itself, he ran into Negi, who gave him a rather disappointed look that quickly vanished as he thought of something.

"Oi, Naruto. Do you know of anyone that gives good advice?" he asked a bit randomly.

Naruto was about to answer but Sakurako stepped in before he got the chance.

"I know that Yue gives pretty good advice, with the whole philosophy thing. But for more practical things you should try either Mana or Kaede. For mental or supportive advice, I would recommend Konoka or Shizuna-sensei." She shot out rapidly, wanting to be rid of Negi so that she could spend time with Naruto. "Hope that answers your question sensei, now we gotta go, bye!"

She seized Naruto's arm and dragged him away before either Negi or him could object. Negi was rather confused at the sudden action, but thought nothing further of it. Following Sakurako's advice, he left in search of the people she listed.

* * *

For a while, Sakurako and Naruto wandered around the campus, each telling some random stories along the way. She told him about, one time when Kazumi swore she saw a ghost through her camera. She was freaked out, but she got over it in time. Somehow or another, the topic changed towards school affairs, such as how Naruto was doing with his job. Sakurako told him that she had shown significant improvement in her grades since Naruto arrived. She claimed it was because of him. That being said, the blond flustered a bit from the praise.

They stopped at a small café near the school grounds. It was a humble little place, not too big but still somehow cosy. The proprietors of the café were a family of three. The father was the cook, the waitress was his daughter, and the wife was a tea maker. The family was rather friendly with their customers, happily greeting them and making them feel at home. The counter was full of delicious looking cakes, pastries and muffins. Above that was the menu, along the cook's special of the day. The daughter was actually a student of Mahora Academy; she was pretty close to Sakurako's age, being only a year older. While she showed the two to their table, she passed a glance at Naruto, and recognised him.

"Hey, you're Naruto, right?" She asked all of a sudden. "It's me, Aya, from senior class 1-E. You remember, right?" Naruto racked his brain for the memory of that class. Then it hit him clear as day, he would never forget that much staring. She was in one if his classes.

Aya was the only one who didn't stare at him and actually did her work. As soon as Naruto recalled the memory, he nodded and confirmed her question.

Sakurako was a little jealous of the blonde's attention being shifted from her, but it changed after they were seated. Not surprisingly, Naruto found the place very similar to Ichiraku Ramen back in Konoha. He smiled at the memory of the father-daughter ran Ramen stand and all the good memories that went with it. Sakurako questioned him about his sudden sincere smile.

"They remind me of some good people, back where I came from." Sakurako accepted this answer, and soon ordered a large milkshake with two straws, one for each of them. Naruto was a bit puzzled at her choice, but chose to keep his mouth shut. When the beverage arrived, the strawberry blonde girl took a sip and from her straw while Naruto watched in confusion. She winked at him and gestured with her eyes for him to take a sip. He did so with a bit of caution. The milk was flavoured chocolate with mint; Naruto actually had to restrain himself from guzzling the rest instantly. A cursory glance back up confirmed that Sakurako was still sipping from her straw. It was about then that he noticed the gravity of the situation.

Their faces were rather close, being barely ten centimetres apart. Her puckered lips almost seemed to be inviting him to mesh his own against hers. Her closed eyes only served to make her image seem so much more innocent. The slight blush dusting her cheeks made it seem like she was waiting for him to take her lips right then and there. For the briefest moment, Naruto almost considered doing it.

It took quite a bit of his will to stop himself. His body was willing him to do it. A hormone induced teenager sometimes can lose control over their body, and the simplest desires in a single moment can allow it.

Then again his mind was divided as well. One half said that it was worth just the one time and that no one would find out, while the other argued that he shouldn't be kissing girls he barely knew. Naruto took a deep breath through the nose to clear his head. He pulled away from his straw and spoke.

"Sakurako-chan, do you mind if we go somewhere a little…less public for a little while?" he asked, being careful with his words. The Cheerleader responded happily and with a wide grin.

The two finished their drink, payed for it and left. Not before the owners said that they could come back again. In a few moments, Naruto was holding Sakurako's hand as they stood under the world tree, the sun setting in the distance.

"Hmm, not quite the best place." He muttered to himself. Sakurako heard it however.

"Wh-" she was silenced as Naruto quickly curled an arm around her and jumped up to the nearest branch. Within seconds, they were standing on the said branch, Sakurako leaning back against the trunk of the tree. Still mildly confused, she tried to examine his eyes as best she could. All she could decipher from them was lust.

Naruto's hormones were raging once again, taking control from him once again, and erasing all thoughts, apart from Sakurako's lips, from his mind. Slowly, he closed the distance to her. The slowness was making Sakurako not only nervous, but impatient as well.

Carefully, Naruto placed his hands on her hips and pulled her close, making her give a small squeak. He flattened his body against hers, making her breasts press up against his chest. Sakurako felt her fingers dancing up his arms, before finally collapsing behind his neck. For a fleeting moment, they both smiled before they pressed their lips together.

Even if it only lasted a few seconds, to her it was as long as an hour. When they finally broke contact, Sakurako was in full blush. She shyly took a step back and raised a hand to her lips. Only one thought went through her mind at that time. 'Wonderful.'

'Soft', was the thought that went through Naruto's mind. Subconsciously, he tasted his lips, savouring the flavour from Sakurako's lips. The swift kiss brought a reasonable amount of arousal to his system. He needed to utilise his chakra to reduce the testosterone levels in his blood. The kiss itself made his blood rush, making him feel like he was on fire, his heart beating like he was running a marathon.

A minute of silence went by between them. At the same time, both looked at each other and a smile started to split their mouths. For once in a long time, Sakurako couldn't form a sentence, and Naruto didn't say anything. They just smiled at each other. Soon the silence became uncomfortable, and Naruto chose to break it.

"So, you liked it?" he asked. Sakurako hesitantly nodded, with the smile still on her face. This caused Naruto to chuckle. "Does this mean that we're a couple now?"

Sakurako could only smile, her heart fluttering too much for her to speak. 'This must be how Misa feels around her boyfriend.' She thought, taking the feeling of warmth for granted.

"So, you wanna try another round?" Naruto suddenly asked. At the question, Sakurako grinned wider than the Cheshire cat himself.

* * *

Negi on the other hand wasn't having such a good time. He found Kaede, but she was in the mountains. Half of his day was spent trekking through the forest in search of her. When he finally located her, his clothes were soaked and he was starving. This prompted Kaede to request that they catch lunch, or the fish in the nearby stream. By which the means were by throwing kunai at them. As it turned out, Negi couldn't throw a knife to save his life. Next was mushroom hunting, which Kaede didn't waste time to gloat about her Shadow Clones.

After lunch was gathering dinner. This proved to be much harder. The poor mage was completely exhausted by the time they returned to the camp. Just after finishing dinner, he tried talking.

"You know, ever since I got here. Whenever I've been faced with an obstacle, I've either run away. When I try to stand up to it, I throw consequence and morality to the wind." He confessed. "But now that I see you, doing things that most people would stay away from, and enjoying it. It reminds me of how much of a coward I am."

"Negi-sensei, you're not a coward. Remember back in Library Island?" She questioned. Seeing him nod, she continued. "Even though we were in a dire situation, you kept your cool. During some of the life-threatening parts, I could swear that you were enjoying yourself. You weren't entirely serious, and that's why you enjoyed it. Some times it's better to tackle a tough situation with a smile and a laugh."

Negi hung on her every word, it was almost all true. He did have fun in Library Island, despite the situation. He was taking everything recently a little too seriously. If he acted like every little action was going to lead to his death, then that's what would eventually happen.

That night, he slept soundly. With what Kaede said, he would change the way he looked at situations.

* * *

In the darkness, only one light was online. It was a computer screen. On half of the display were the readouts from the daily power usage; on the other side was the yearly schedule.

"As suspected, the barrier is produced by another master. But in order to encompass the entire campus, it consumes an enormous amount of electrical energy." Spoke one voice in a mild monotone.

"To think that I had no idea for nearly two decades…hah, a mage that relies on technology shows weakness!" another spoke, this one being a bit more childish. "I think that the plan will go by rather smoothly tomorrow evening." The person gave a rather chilling chuckle at the though. "The power goes out, we catch the boy in the confusion and I take his blood, like taking candy from a baby really."

"Master… why would an infant have sugared treats?"

"It's just a phrase. It basically means that it will be easy."

"I see."

"What ever turn the computer off and let's get going already, I'm hungry."

With that, the remaining light went dark.

* * *

The next day, school went back to normal. Naruto was getting dreamy stares from Sakurako and Ako. Negi was getting them from quite a few more students, the most prominent being Ayaka. Both of them expressed shock when they discovered that Evangeline had actually attended the class that day. Aside from that, Sakurako seemed a bit too happy. When anyone asked her why it was so, she just brushed it off as nothing.

Actually, almost everything went fine. There was an argument or two, but they were quickly extinguished. By the time the two teachers got back to the apartment building, everyone was just outside buying flashlights and candles. When they asked why they were doing that, a couple people said that there was going to be a routine blackout for the night. Both Naruto and Negi shared a look. They would have to be on extra careful on their watch tonight. Negi went off to tell his room mates that he would be out for a while. Naruto did the same for Ayaka.

Two hours later, the sun had set and both teachers were on watch, Naruto from the roof, Negi on the balconies. From his vantage point, Naruto could see several building's lights go out one by one. Negi was conversing with his ermine familiar. As soon as the power outage reached them, Chamo shivered.

"What's wrong?" Negi asked slightly worried.

"Can't you feel that? That malicious feeling from the magic around us." The ermine answered. Now that he mentioned it, Negi did feel something odd about the magic in the air. Not wanting to take a chance, he took out a flashlight so that he could see a little better.

A few minutes passed before anything happened. Naruto thought he heard something like a muffled scream from the bathhouses, but passed it off as his mind playing tricks on him. Nothing else was heard besides Negi's talking with the ermine. That was until he actually heard Negi exclaim "Makie-san," rather loudly.

Not missing a beat, Naruto leapt from the roof and stuck to the wall. What he saw was Makie Sasaki, naked in the middle of the balcony. For some strange reason she was glowing. Negi was red-faced and shocked to see his student like that, Chamo was rather pleased.

Other than the glow, nothing seemed wrong about her. Just as that thought passed through Naruto's mind, she opened her mouth in a smile, revealing that her canines had elongated significantly. She said something to Negi that made him tense, and tighten his grip on the flashlight.

"Where is Evangeline!" he demanded

"Come to the baths in ten minutes Negi-sensei." Makie replied in a sweet voice that made Negi cringe. She bid goodbye, before back flipping off the balcony, only to snap her ribbon onto a nearby pole and swing to safety. After landing she did another display of acrobatics before disappearing from sight.

With the show over, Naruto dropped in behind Negi. Just in time to hear Chamo claim that Makie was 'Half-vampire'.

"But when I examined her, there was barely a trace of magic! This shouldn't be happening." Negi panicked.

"Kuso, I thought that this might happen." Naruto muttered, now beside Negi.

"What do you mean? How could you possible have expected this?" Negi demanded, trying to understand what was going on.

"It has barely anything to do with magic; it's about where the bite was." Naruto partially explained. Negi gestured for him to continue. "There's a critical nerve on the neck that might cause paralysis when damaged. But when energy is channelled there, magic, chakra, whatever is directed there during the time of incident; the victim doesn't become paralysed but as a trade off is more susceptible to pain. What Evangeline does is not damaging it, but instead altering it. Makie is more than likely unconscious, and Evangeline has complete control over her body." Naruto explained grimly.

"So once the vamp got her powers back, she could control her?" Chamo squeaked. "The barrier must be somehow affected by the blackout! This is bad! Oh kami-dono, this is bad!" The ermine was having a severe panic attack. "Aniki! We need to get Ane-san!"

"No, we can't risk any more of the girls getting hurt. Naruto-san, you'll have to be my backup. If it gets too difficult for me, I'll say 'Storm', got it?"

"Don't worry, I won't forget and I'll keep a good ear and eye out." Naruto mock half-saluted, before turning around and began to jump from building to building in the direction of the bath houses.

When the blonde was far enough away, Negi muttered a short spell, one that summoned several magical weapons, of all shapes and sizes. In rapid succession, he equipped weapon after weapon. By the end he had at least three disposable staffs, a magic deflecting sword, various vials filled with catalysts and a reasonably rare magical pistol. To top it all off, he was wearing a cloak that was similar to his fathers.

Without wasting time, Negi half stood-half crouched on his staff, a stance that allowed him to leap off if necessary. His right foot was on the tail, the left near the middle and with one hand just in front of his left foot for stability. Kicking off, he set a bee line straight for the baths. In his rush, Negi completely forgot about Chamo.

Two minutes later, Negi was standing knee-deep in the pool sized bath. His eyes darting from shadows to shadows, tracking what ever moved. Everything in the baths moved, the plants, water, even the walls seemed to move. Suddenly, laughter began reverberating around the massive room. With no clear direction of the origin, Negi was just as lost as ever.

BANG! The skylight sharply opened, letting the bluish light of the moon filter in. Directly underneath the moonlight was a pagoda, upon the roof of which sat five girls and a woman. The girls wore maid costumes, while the woman wore a dominatrix-like outfit.

"Are you hoping that I will be distracted by your breasts, Evangeline?" Negi openly mocked, with a lop-sided grin.

Evangeline's left eye twitched, before she dropped her transformation, settling for a glare that could freeze water. "So you came alone, what happened to your boyfriend? What ever it doesn't matter. Go get him girls." She dismissed her puppets with a wave of her hand.

Four of the girls leapt down, letting Negi get a better look at them. The four girls were Makie Sasaki, Akira Ogouchi, Yuna Akashi and Ako Izumi.

"Tch, you've gone lower than me in cowardly tactics, Eva-chan." Negi muttered as he got into a defensive position. Slowly the girls advanced on him. Negi quickly assessed his options. The best one would take a little while, but it would work.

Once the girls were within a meter of him, he snapped his free hand to his vial pouches. He snatched one from holstered on his chest, another from his belt and tossed them just in front of him. With a flourish, he swatted them with one of his disposable staffs and leapt away, landing on the floor tiles. The two catalysts did nothing, until Negi held his open palm towards the falling liquids.

"_Cancel!"_ he proclaimed. As he finished, there was a massive gust of wind that literally tore the girl's costumes to shreds. Makie and Yuna were able to leap away, therefore avoiding the effects.

"Humph…not bad. Time for the real thing! Chachamaru!" Evangeline commanded as she spread her cap making her look more menacing. Chachamaru sped towards Negi using her thrusters. She apologised before getting half-way.

"Kuso…Storm." Negi cursed. The second word was heard by a friendly pair of ears.

Just seconds before Chachamaru reached Negi, she was intercepted from above by a red and yellow blur. Her head was sent careening downwards from a flying axe kick from Naruto. Before she reached the ground, three more Narutos slid underneath her and delivered upward kicks. Now Chachamaru was slowly drifting up, the three Uzumakis below her, disappearing into clouds of smoke. From above again the real Naruto charged his hand with a sphere of spinning chakra.

"_Rasengan!"_ he shouted, announcing his attack as he thrust it into Chachamaru's abdomen.

The robotic girl was sent back down to the ground spinning. The impact was solid, the ground didn't crack, but Chachamaru was beginning to reboot, her equivalent of unconsciousness.

"Magic barrage: seventeen arrows of Ice" Evangeline shouted, thrusting her arm out in front of herself. She wasn't able to change targets, since Naruto entered the battle mid-chant, so her arrows flew towards Negi. Seeing this, Negi ditched his cloak and bolted for the nearest window. The arrows smashed through the window just before Negi jumped.

The now falling red-head saw the arrows change direction to follow him. Mere seconds before he became a stain on the pavement, Negi twisted in midair and landed on his staff. With the arrows very close behind him, he kicked the pavement and focused his magic into creating lift and speed for his staff. The arrows didn't give up their relentless pursuit; they curved just as Negi did to avoid the ground.

"Ahh, Naruto-sensei, so nice of you to join us," Evangeline sneered, showing confidence on the outside. Yet inside the vampire was rather afraid. "I'm afraid I have to run now, enjoy the girls' company." She took flight, while Makie and Yuna distracted Naruto.

Makie got her ribbon around Naruto's ankle, causing him to trip. Yuna on the other hand was scarily accurate with a basketball. Naruto could barely avoid them by millimetres. He would have a hard time getting away from these girls.

With the ribbon wrapped around his ankle, Naruto didn't have many options. So he did the first thing that seemed natural, cut the ribbon. He pulled out a kunai and sliced through the ribbon just as Yuna threw another ball at him. Following up from the slash, Naruto tossed the kunai in hand straight at the ball. The two thrown objects connected and fell to the ground. Yuna's ball and Naruto's kunai embedded in it.

Makie was left with only a half-ribbon, the situation was clear. She bolted to the window and jumped through, opting to retreat and help Evangeline. Yuna was now virtually defenceless without her basketball. Futilely, she tried to drive Naruto back with her fists. Bit by bit she was pushed back into a wall.

Seeing his chance, Naruto executed a leg sweep on the vampire controlled girl. Yuna was sent sprawling on the ground in an attempt to get back up. Before she could even get on her knees, Naruto straddled her, keeping Yuna face down on the floor. He placed in open palm on the bite mark, not registering her small yelp of pain.

Naruto knew the basics of healing jutsus; most of it just consisted of speeding up the platelets in the local area of injury. But healing a nerve needs precise control, but the best he could do is pulse chakra through the wound, hopefully cleansing it of residue Magic. Chakra is essentially the opposite of Magic, since it comes from one's self, whilst magic comes from everything around one's self. So hopefully, Chakra can cancel Magic to an extent.

With this in mind, Naruto pulse a single wave through Yuna's bite mark. The girl slumped onto the floor and ceased moving. It seemed to work, at least for the moment, her pulse checked out. Satisfied that Yuna would be fine, Naruto charged towards the window that Negi jumped out. Reaching the edge, he leapt to the nearest building and began following the path of ice.

Just after he left, the unmoving body of Chachamaru began to twitch. Her eyelids parted and she carefully stood up. "Reboot completed all systems nominal."

* * *

Negi had managed to evade the Ice Arrows, but at the cost of his ammunition for his magic gun. In that time, Evangeline had caught up to him and began casting spell after spell at him, each one more accurate than the last. Soon the spells cast by the vampire were glancing blows. Negi did his best to get to the trap area, but at best, he could evade Evangeline for no more than another three minutes.

To make things worse, Makie seemed to also be catching up; he could hear her laughing get closer and closer. For a single moment, she stopped her giggles. Negi was puzzled, but then got the shock of his life when Makie leaped from a side street, her ribbon tracing a path straight for his staff. The pink haired girl used her ribbon to loop up and above the staff before landing gracefully, right on the tip of Negi's staff. Not waiting for a reaction, Makie started throwing kicks at Negi; each one he dodged got him an unintentional peak at her panties.

Whether by luck or a tight grip, Negi held on through out the girl's assault. It was almost her eighth attack, when she was suddenly knocked off her feat. A glance back saw that she had hit a flag that was flapping about, leaving her tangled in the material.

Not far ahead was the bridge; it was there that the trap was set for Evangeline. Before he could think any further on the subject, he felt the staff jerk a bit. Looking down, he saw a mop of blonde hair racing below him.

Naruto had caught up to Negi, just in time to see Makie get tangled in the flag. Keeping his speed up, he was soon below Negi. He had to jump and knock the staff to get him to notice however.

Negi looked down and jerked his thumb behind him, silently asking Naruto to take care of Evangeline. The blonde nodded and prepared to jump incredibly high. Chakra was essentially flowing out of his legs when he jumped. It was enough for him to get to Evangeline's altitude, yet there was something he missed. Then he saw it, a bright light shining over Evangeline's shoulder. As it got closer, he could make out some features, distinct antennae jutting out from the top and a wake of green hair. It was Chachamaru, and she was heading straight for Naruto, her thrusters on full burn.

"Damn." Was the only thing Naruto said before Chachamaru slammed into him. With the added weight, Chachamaru could barely keep altitude. Slowly but surely, she and Naruto began to fall towards the river.

Negi saw it all happen; Chachamaru intercepted Naruto before he could launch an attack against Evangeline. Now he'd have to deal with her, himself. Luckily, he could still use the trap. Looking back, he began to taunt Eva.

"Come on, is that all the 'Undying Mage' can do? The dunce back at the academy could do better!" he shouted at her, trying to make her think she would get the upper hand.

"Little boy, I'll teach you not to mess with your superiors!" With that, she began chanting a much more powerful spell.

Negi swung in close to the road, nearing the trap.

"_Frozen Earth!"_ Evangeline's icy voice sounded.

Negi had just passed the trap, when the ground directly in front of him erupted into glaciers of ice. His staff's head was embedded in the glaciers and he was flung right into them. Negi barely had time to twist, so that his back took the impact.

It was painful to move, even barely. Negi's entire body erupted in fresh waves of pain as he tried to stand. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Evangeline land. 'She's close. Just a couple more steps.' True to her nature Evangeline stalked towards her fallen prey, her lust for his blood oozed from her very presence.

"That's a pretty shameful strategy, don't you think?" she gloated, her voice thick with pride. "The bridge is on the edge of campus. Thinking of running away bo-aah!"

Just as she took that final step, she set off the trap. She was bound to the very ground itself. The runic circle sprung up and enveloped her with unbreakable ropes. Just as the ropes tightened around her, Negi struggled to his feet. Each of feet felt like they were made of lead, stable yet hard to move.

"Guess…this…means that I…won." He breathed out, his voice almost failing him. The slightest of smiles crept onto his face.

"Yeah, usually you'd be right. However, if Chachamaru wins her little fight with Naruto-sensei, I'll be free of this cursed trap." Evangeline reasoned. "That means that you will be in big trouble boy." She finished with a tasting lick of her lips.

* * *

Under the bridge, Naruto was standing on the water, listening for any sound that might give Chachamaru away. At the sound of a splash, he whirled around, only to get hit in the back. Reeling from the impact, Naruto swung his fist around to hit nothing but air. Another splash and Naruto stood still. He could hear the tell-tale sound of rushing air. As fast as lightning, he snapped around and seized Chachamaru's wrist in his left hand. Not giving her time to respond, he quickly elbowed her in the stomach with his right arm and sprung his fist up in a back handed punch to her chin.

Chachamaru reeled from the attack, but Naruto hadn't let go. With his right shin, he swept out her legs. With his now free right hand, he charged up a _Rasengan_, and slammed it into her. Chachamaru convulsed, and began to sink into the water.

The robot couldn't lose this fast, not with her master needing her aid. She felt Naruto's grip loosening on her arm. She took the chance and shot her arm out of the socket and into the blonde's stomach, causing him to back off. Chachamaru leapt from his grasp and ignited her thrusters. She shot straight up towards the topside of the bridge.

Naruto quickly recovered from Chacha's counter attack. Hearing the roar of her thrusters, he jumped right after her. A few seconds later, he was in front of an exhausted Negi. Evangeline was bound by some ropes, Chachamaru was right behind her. Her antennae had extended and were emitting some kind of signal. Another moment, and the ropes shattered, freeing Evangeline, who was grinning evilly.

As soon as her master was free, Chachamaru sped forward aiming for Negi's staff, but was once again foiled by Naruto. Robot and Ninja grappled in a battle to hold each other off.

"_Seventeen Arrows of Ice/Thunder!"_ Negi and Evangeline shouted at the same time. From their respective casters, Ice and Thunder arrows shot forth. Each one collided with their counterpart just above their battling guardians.

Lightning crackled and ice fell like glass shards. Both Naruto and Chachamaru were evenly matched; neither could gain headway on the other. Both held onto the other's wrist, trying to attack and defend at the same time.

"_Thunder Tempest!"_

"_Blizzard of Darkness!"_

Naruto and Chachamaru looked behind themselves at their respective partners. From Naruto's side was a swirling white-blue column that fizzled the air with electricity, from Chachamaru's was a black and white column that froze the air around it. Both guardians looked back at each other and nodded. As one, they leapt up into the air, still grappling with each other.

In the end, Negi's spell won out over Eva's. The vampire saw this and leapt to the side to avoid the blast; this led to her flying over the water. When the dust cleared, one half of her clothes were ripped to shreds.

"Tch, just like your father." She spoke, sounding heavily aggravated.

Chachamaru and Naruto were falling. Chacha's thrusters were damaged from the clash of the two powerful spells, so she couldn't ignite them. The best she could do was wait for the ground to hit. She could feel Naruto's grasp pulling her about, and without warning, the air resistance suddenly lessened.

Thud! The two battle partners had hit ground. Although Chachamaru was expecting the ground to feel much harder, and what was this pressure against her mouth?

The sight that greeted her was Naruto's blue eyes staring directly into hers. Nervously, she looked down, and saw that her lips were connected to his. This thought, made her engine move faster and faster, causing her to blush.

The two stayed like that for at least five seconds, with both of the mages having differing reactions. Negi had his mouth agape and his eye twitching, Evangeline was laughing like there was no tomorrow.

Hearing her master's cackling, Chachamaru shot up and distanced herself from Naruto significantly. But something caught her attention, lights were snapping back on along the river bed and inner city. She tried to call out to her master, but she couldn't be heard over Evangeline's laughter.

Then it was too late. As if she was struck by lightning, Evangeline jerked and screamed in pain. Then in a horrific slow motion, she started to fall. Negi sprinted and jumped off the edge, going after Eva.

While she was falling, Evangeline contemplated just how similar it was when the kid's father saved her. Yet she doubted that she would be saved this time. As she stared at Negi falling after her, only one thought registered. 'Idiot.'

Eva's mind flashed back to her time with Nagi. Eating fish after he saved her, the whole month she followed him around begging him to be with her, and finally the actual sealing into Mahora. Those horrible laughs from that man, he was laughing at her in her school uniform. She almost openly cried at the memory.

Evangeline's memories were interrupted by something shooting past her. Her eyes focused, and Negi no longer had his staff, and he was still falling.

"_Mea Virga!"_ he shouted against the wind.

Negi threw his staff past Evangeline, so that he would land on it. Slowly, the staff began to rise just above the water.

'Come on just a bit more!' Negi thought as he reached for Evangeline's hand. 'Come on damn it! Gotcha!'

He had a firm grip on Eva and hauled her up closer to him. He placed one arm under her knees and another holding her shoulder. Awkwardly twisting in the air, Negi somehow brought his feet to land on his staff first. Panting heavily, Negi made his staff rise up towards the bridge.

"Wh-why did you save me?" Evangeline asked weakly.

"You don't really need a reason to save someone." Negi replied with a smile. "Besides, now you owe me."

Evangeline could only blush at his answer and smile. He looked so much like Nagi, it was completely uncanny. When they landed back on the bridge, Naruto was back up on his feet, and Chachamaru, was sending nervous looks at Naruto.

"So let the negotiations begin!" Negi suddenly shouted.

"What negotiations!" Eva screamed.

"Oh, you know, the terms of your defeat, since I won and saved your life. Therefore I get to choose two conditions."

"That's not fair, you…you Nagi clone!"

"Condition one: No more escape attempts or hunts for blood." Negi continued, completely oblivious to Eva's threats. "Condition two: You shall attend all my classes, whether you like it or not."

"Fine, I'll do it." Evangeline admitted rather dejectedly.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" Negi started, at the same time pulling out the class roster, a pen and a devilish smile to go on his face. "I'm going to write 'I won' over your picture in the class roster."

Evangeline now had a horrified look on her face and scrambled to get the roster from the 'Nagi-clone'.

"As a bonus, to your continued cooperation, I shall find a way to lift this curse from you Eva-chan." He remarked with a wink.

While the two bickered, Naruto crept up to Chachamaru.

"So is Eva always like that?" he asked a bit confused.

"No, this is the first time I've seen her have this much fun." Chacha replied with a content smile on her face.

* * *

AN: YES! Chapter 10 is complete!

Phew, that took a long time, no thanks to writer's block which hampered my ability for a few weeks. So I hoped to make it up to you guys by writing a chapter that was double the length. That's right I made it to 9000 words!

Ok, now onto other things.

Yes, spells are more powerful that Jutsu. I came up with the idea when I was contemplating 'Sage Mode'. That energy came from everything around the user, much like Magic, and the effects were incredibly devastating. Naruto managed to cut up mountains in the manga while using sage mode.

The 'storm' code word, I just tried to think of something related to maelstroms. And really, 'fox' is way over used. We're talking about Naruto not the thing inside him! Keep that in mind people who want to make Naruto an ANBU.

Yes I am aware that I cut out the whole 'Eva gets sick part' that would have been a killer for me to do.

Edit: The whole Sakurako kiss, I seriously had that one in storage for ages, just waiting for its moment to shine. Hope some people aren't too angry that I got rid of Kazumi as Naruto's main squeeze.

Anything I missed? I hope not. If I did forget to address something please do tell.

Until next time loyal reader, Krimzon-8 out.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 11: The aftermath

"Talking"

'Thinking'

"**Demonic talk"**

'**Demonic Thoughts'**

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

The morning following Evangeline's attack, Negi found himself explaining why he didn't ask Asuna for help. Apparently she was worried as all hell when she heard from Chamo. She didn't properly sleep that night, even after Negi came back.

"Look, I had it under control, Naruto was with me." Negi tried to get Asuna to see he was fine. "Look I know that we did the pactio thing, but that doesn't really mean that I have to rely on just you Asuna."

Asuna looked a bit angry at what he said, but she kept silent. "Can you at least let me help you next time?"

"You have my word Asuna-san." He suddenly clapped. "Now is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

"For now, just treat me to some coffee."

The Mage scampered away to get the Asuna's coffee, while she just briskly walked to a vacant table. Very quickly, Negi came back with his own coffee and Asuna's. Just as he reached her, Evangeline and Chachamaru stopped before both of them.

"Morning Eva-chan, how are you today?" chirped Negi.

"Don't call me that, Negi-sensei." Eva snapped back. "I have no intention of getting along with you to the point where we can greet each other peacefully. Got that?" Chachamaru on the other hand simply bowed and greeted.

Asuna got a bit of a mischievous smirk as she thought of something.

"Hey, Eva, is it true that you had a massive crush on Negi's dad?"

Evangeline responded with the etiquette that one such as her could only have. She spat out all the coffee she had in her mouth at the time, a righteous fire of blush on her face.

"H-how did you learn that!" she demanded/pleaded. Asuna simply pointed at Negi, who was nonchalantly whistling. "YOU! How the hell did you learn that!" she all but shouted at Negi.

"It seems that the Dean knows quite a bit." He supplied.

"Next full moon, that old man is losing just as much blood as you are boy." Eva threatened, a very dark aura surrounding her.

"Master, is that true. You did indeed have a 'crush' on Negi-sensei's Father?" Chachamaru decided to pipe in.

"Quiet, that doesn't concern you." Eva snapped at her servant, quickly she took on a solemn look from her memories with Nagi. "He's already dead anyway. Fifteen years ago it was. Bastard said he'd lift my curse one day. Can't blame him if he's dead, but still the curse was rather powerful. To my knowledge, there hasn't been anyone strong enough to lift it since Nagi. So here I am stuck in the eternal hell of school."

"He's not dead." Negi declared, slamming his hands on the table. "Eleven years ago, he gave me this staff and saved my entire village. I still remember it clear as day. There is no way that he is dead."

"H-he's still alive?" Eva asked weakly, tears forming at the edges of her eyes. She shook her head lightly to try and process this new information. Soon she started shaking with laughter. "HAHA, so he's alive, that man. He's unbelievable; he was always the kind of guy you could never kill, no matter what the odds!"

"Hey, sounds like me!" said a voice from atop a nearby building.

All four of the group looked up to see, wildly spiked blonde hair and a crimson red jacket. It was Naruto, and if what he said was true, he only just arrived. Still grinning like an idiot, the blonde jumped down to their level. The two with red hair responded with a smile and wave, Eva scowled and Chachamaru blushed and suddenly found her shoes incredibly interesting

"What's this about a man who can't be killed?" he asked rather excitedly.

"We were just talking about Negi's father." Asuna answered.

"Wait, Naruto did you just call yourself invincible?" Negi quickly asked, wanting to change the subject for a bit.

"Kind of. I have survived fatal wounds before. One time I had a hole the size of your arm right through here," he indicated his right shoulder. "My best friend gave me that wound. It wasn't an accident; he was trying to kill me." Shock and horror were on Asuna and Negi's face, Chachamaru held a hand over her mouth while her eyes widened. The least affected was Eva, who shrugged it off like it was nothing.

"Big deal, I've been impaled on sticks and burned alive. Didn't hurt me." She waved off. "Anyway, I know where you might find some clues to find Nagi." She said cryptically, building up the tension.

"Drama queen, hurry up." Naruto insisted.

"In Kyoto, there is a house that he lived in. If he's alive, there might be something there that can tell us his location. I would go myself, but you know the curse and all."

"Damn, if I only had the days off or the money." Negi muttered in frustration.

"That sounds rather good, eh Negi?" Asuna asked her oblivious teacher. Meanwhile Eva had rolled up the sleeve of said teacher's sleeve and had taken a bite into his arm.

At first Negi didn't notice anything, until he felt something warm and wet on his arm and a strange sucking noise. Slowly, he rotated his head to the side, to see his arm outstretched and Evangeline digging her teeth into his arm. She hadn't pierced the skin, but she was close. Negi was so concerned about Eva that he didn't notice the flash. He quickly pulled his arm away from her.

"You, little bloodsucking leech!" he shouted.

"Just consider it payment for the information." Evangeline said in an innocent voice.

"And saving your life wasn't enough?"

"Nope."

Having enough of Evangeline, he focused on his more trusting allies, who for some strange reason were currently in a laughing fit. Turning to them, he saw that Asuna was laughing at something in Naruto's hand. Creeping over, he peeked over the blonde's shoulder. What he saw seriously made him regret making friends with Naruto.

In Naruto's hand was a digital camera, and the latest photo was on display. The picture was of Negi's shock at seeing Evangeline biting into his arm. The teacher's face was absolutely priceless; it was something in between horror, shock, irritation and a strange pleasure.

Instantly, Naruto felt a massive killer intent focused on him. Carefully, he turned around, only to see Negi in mid chant and staff aimed at him, the static electricity intensified tenfold around him. Not leaving a lot of room for explanation, Naruto ran so fast that he left a ghost of dust where he last stood.

People all across the city could swear that there had, for all intents and purposes, just been a lighting storm in broad daylight.

* * *

The next day, Negi announced that 3-A's school trip would be to Kyoto, much to his own excitement. Naruto basically laughed hard when Negi actually gave a massive thank you to Ayaka in the form of a handshake and praise. He swore that she almost fainted when Negi pulled that stunt. Naruto was laughing until he saw Sakurako started getting that grin and twinkle in her eye. Within three seconds flat, she had him pinned to the floor and was cuddling him like there was no tomorrow, the bad thing was that his hormones were now on the move again. Amongst the chaos that Negi was creating, Naruto's pleas went unnoticed.

Negi's celebrations ended when he was called to the Principle's office, and still Naruto's cries for help fell on deaf ears.

"No don't leave me alone with them!" he begged Negi, but the mage either didn't hear him or was playing a cruel joke. Before he went, Negi said one last thing.

"Class dismissed."

With the resulting chaos, a distraction was provided; Naruto wriggled out of Sakurako's grasp and ran for dear life. Well he ran to the roof, it was better than most places, especially when there was hardly anyone there. Luckily for him, no one was up there. Naruto used this chance to catch some sleep or at least pass the time.

'What ever the Principle will tell Negi, he'll tell me.' He thought.

* * *

"The trip's been cancelled!" Negi all but shouted when he heard the news. The best physical reaction he allowed was a bowed head and clenched fists.

"Well it's not cancelled for sure yet. It's just that They don't want you to go?" the old man tried to explain.

"'They', who's 'They'?" Negi asked, slightly confused.

"The Kansai Magic Association." The Principle began. "I am a director for the Kanto Magic Association, and the relationship between Kansai and Kanto is shaky at the moment, to say the least. If I were to send a teacher who is also a mage, they would most likely voice their disapproval."

"So you're saying that _I_ can't go?" Negi questioned, annoyed.

"Not quite, Negi-kun let me finish. I want to stop the feuding with the west. So I will send you as a special envoy." He presented a letter to the teen. "All you have to do is give this letter to their leader. You might be in danger along the way, but since they are also mages, I rather doubt that they'd target the students." He stopped to give a pointed gaze at Negi. "This will not be easy Negi-kun, remember that Naruto-kun is there for support if needed."

"I understand. I will accomplish the task, Principle. You have my word." Negi enthusiastically accepted.

"One more thing Negi. My granddaughter Konoka used to live in Kyoto…She hasn't found out about your magic has she?" Negi started to sputter and think of a when Konoka might have seen him. "I don't care myself, but her parents might think otherwise. If possible don't let her find out. That'll be all."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Negi was walking back to the dorms when Chamo popped out from under his jacket.

"Aniki, I forgot to tell you. Did you get a card or something when you made the contract with Ane-san?" The white ermine queried.

"Yeah, I think I did, but it's probably back at the dorm." Negi reflexively blushed when he remembered that particular memory.

* * *

Three days prior to the battle with Evangeline.

"Wait, you can't do this all by yourself!" shouted Asuna. Negi stopped mid stride and looked back at her. "I'll do it; you might want more help if you want to beat Evangeline in a fight."

"I just don't want anyone else getting hurt is all, Asuna. I would never forgive myself if I got you involved and you get injured because of it." Negi said a bit downcast. "If you're willing to do it, then I guess I have no say in the matter. Onee-chan taught me to always grant a lady's wish."

"Alright then, kiddies, stand right in front of each other and I'll get working." Chamo practically yelled from his position on the windowsill. Negi stood within a foot of Asuna, who was looking around nervously. Her gaze stopped directly on his lips. Within moments, Chamo had finished his drawing. Then with his mighty ermine voice, he yelled out "Pactio!"

Without warning, the chalk drawing began to glow and emit strange and comforting warmth. Along with the warmth and light came a slight updraft that caused Asuna's skirt to flutter up. For the first time in a while, Negi actually admired Asuna's eyes, one as deep and blue as the ocean, the other as green as an entire forest in spring. Her fiery red hair only seemed to intensify her eyes.

Negi didn't really want to hurry it up, but he knew that they couldn't just stand there forever. So he took the initiative by softly grasping Asuna's shoulders and bringing her closer. As their mouths came closer and closer, Asuna had to tilt her head back slightly, and Negi had to stretch over. Finally, both lips meshed together in very short kiss. Although as Negi pulled back, when it was complete, Asuna found herself trying to sneak another out of him.

Suddenly embarrassed at what she tried to do, Asuna ran towards the classroom with a burning blush across her cheeks. Mean while, Negi was just trying to get over how good it actually felt.

* * *

"Chamo, don't bring that up again." Negi demanded.

"Oi, Negi!" a voice from just ahead shouted. Looking ahead the teenage mage saw his two roommates walking towards him. Konoka was wearing what seemed to be an over sized sweater, Asuna had a simple sweater and tight fitting pants. When he actually took a good look, he could swear that she was a little angry. In her hand he caught a glance at a thin card-like object.

"Negi-kun, do you want to help us shop for a suitable bag for the trip?" Konoka asked, a little too bubbly. "Oh yeah and can you make me one of those cards that Asuna's got?"

The last question almost made his blood freeze. 'Crap, she did find it. I put in a safe place, how did she find it?' Negi mentally berated himself. Said safe spot was actually at the bottom of his travelling bag. He was brought out of his mental suicide by Konoka's giggling.

"For Negi-kun to have made a card and to keep it in a special place… you must be…" she literally couldn't finish the sentence, due to her giggling like a school girl, which she was.

Negi instantly denied it, but couldn't go any further with his denials since Asuna simply dragged him away. Within another fifteen minutes, the teen was holding a pile of casual clothes that were meant for him. Despite the grave situation that most men his age would kill to get out of, Negi was actually having a bit of fun. Said fun was brought to a halt when Konoka demanded that he try on some of the clothes that he was carrying. Whilst in the middle of changing, Chamo decided to pipe up.

"Aniki, go for Konoka-nee-san's lips!" the effect it had on Negi was making him fall down and crash into the wall. "Do the contract with Konoka! Think about it. There might be trouble in Kansai, right? So it would be better to have a few more partners and besides, doesn't she have magic in her blood?"

Negi couldn't deny that, but he was a bit cautious and more than hesitant. Before he could think about it anymore, Konoka's voice broke through the screen.

"Negi-kun, do you need help changing?" she asked as she poked her head in. At the sight of his half-naked body, Konoka dashed right into the booth and fiercely shut the curtain. When she turned back to the boy, he had his newly bought jacket firmly on, as was the blush that filled his face. The brunette simply smiled sweetly and advanced on him. "Negi-kun, what do I have to do to get one of those cards?"

Negi's eye twitched slightly, but Chamo saw a perfect chance and he wasn't going to miss it.

"Go for it Aniki! You have to do it!" the ermine quietly cheered his friend on. Negi was quick to comply yet again, still a bit hesitant to follow his familiar's advice.

"Umm… I can make one for you Konoka-san." The girl in question simply squealed in anticipation, it was quickly silenced as Negi spoke again. "But there is one condition…Y-you have to kiss me." The red head finished rather embarrassed.

Before she could even get her answer out, Negi quickly dismissed his last comment with a hurried explanation and a nervous laugh. Konoka on the other hand wasn't really listening to his explanation, and simply agreed to his conditions.

Chamo saw this as a victory, while Negi felt the blood leave his face. However, Konoka thought she was onto something.

"So… does that mean that you've already kissed Asuna?" She asked, suddenly curious and momentarily forgetting that she wanted a card. Quickly, Negi denied this, and Konoka was back to wanting to get a card of her own. Before her teacher could react, Konoka had him pinned up against the wall of the booth, one hand on his chest and the other on his shoulder.

Negi sputtered inconsistent nonsense as he tried to convince her that now was not such a good time. Each time her face got a little bit close, he would lean his head away. Pretty soon he admitted defeat as his head hit the wall. As Konoka got closer, she started murmuring something about how unfair it was with Asuna having Negi all to herself.

Little did either know, that said girl was approaching their position.

Konoka landed her lips on Negi's cheek, just as Asuna pulled the curtain open. Without any warning what so ever, Chamo activated the circle he drew during the slight struggle between the red head and brunette.

Soon after, a little mote of light appeared and spread into a flat rectangular shape. Konoka grabbed the light as it began to show its true form. When the card became visible, it had a very badly drawn picture of Konoka in a basic witches' outfit.

Very quickly, Konoka began to complain about the flaws of the card and how it was completely different to Asuna's, not caring if said girl was right behind her.

Being absent of the mind at the current moment, Negi dryly commented on how it was meant to be a proper kiss after all. Much to Konoka's shock, another moment and she had tears flowing out of her eyes as her card, no matter how badly drawn, disappeared into vapour.

"Let's try again Negi-kun!" she declared, almost instantly after she quickly recovered, trying to force herself onto Negi again, this time for a 'full kiss' complete with tongue. Konoka's charge was stopped by her best friend, as Negi was a bit too shocked to do anything.

"Damn, a kiss on the cheek isn't going to cut it, needs to be full on lip to lip contact. Shame, a single one of those cards means fifty thousand ermine dollars for me, from the ermine organisation." Chamo did his monologue, unaware that Asuna had heard the entire thing.

"Hoho, so **you** were behind this whole thing, just as I thought." She said, cracking her knuckles threateningly. Five seconds later, Chamo was having his skull crushed between Asuna's fingers.

* * *

When they almost reached the dormitories, Konoka swept up close to Negi and whispered in his ear.

"Negi-kun, next time we're all alone, I'll give you a proper kiss, ok?" she suggested with a giggle.

Poor Negi couldn't stop the blush from going to his face.

* * *

Three hours after the bell sounded, signalling to all students that school had finished for the day, Naruto was sound asleep. Currently he was dreaming of his long lost love…Ramen. He hadn't tasted the succulent Miso flavoured noodles in so long. He could remember it all, bowl after bowl was another slice of paradise. The little bits of fish and herbs strewn about was so good he could almost taste them, and that one time before his first Chunin exams, there was a big juicy lobster in his dish. The best thing was that it was on the house.

If one were to look carefully at Naruto's sleeping form, they would see copious amounts of drool dripping from his open mouth, which was in a pleasurable smile.

As it happens, Chachamaru was watching him. It was a rare occasion that Evangeline had given her the afternoon off. She didn't exactly know why, but Chachamaru decided to find Naruto and talk to him in regards to the battle they had during the blackout. The memory of that event was alien, and at the same time rather comforting. For a second, she considered whether her master has felt the same way once. Said curiosity was quickly over come by the memory of how it actually felt. For a fleeting moment, during the kiss, she could feel a kind of connection, a twinge of familiarity.

Strangely, Chachamaru couldn't figure out why there was such a connection. Naruto must have had a different life to hers, at least she hoped. She would never say it, but Chachamaru feels rather lonely when she sees other girls socialising without her. The only other companion she's ever had was Evangeline. When ever she actually did talk to the others, they regarded her as just a robot with no feelings. She longed for someone to actually talk to her like she was a person. So far only three people did Evangeline, her creator Hakase and Chao Lingshen.

When she consulted Hakase, she simply said that none of her sisters' ever showed any sign of emotion. Hakase simply summed it up to the magic in her system. Chachamaru didn't mention the kiss; just that she'd been feeling different that day.

Chachamaru now looked at the task at hand. Naruto was there sound asleep, she thought about this moment the entire time she watched him. Chachamaru wasn't concerned about him waking up, but rather he'd think of her when she did it. She lowered her face until it was close to his, she couldn't believe she was about to do this, the first time was an accident; this was just taking advantage of him.

Without warning, Naruto yawned and in doing so he pushed forward. Chachamaru tried to gasp, but only served to open her mouth to his open mouth. Somehow, his tongue actually got mixed in with hers. The feeling was so new that almost all of her power rushed to her head, causing her to fall into shutdown mode. With a dull thud, Chachamaru hit the floor completely unconscious.

Upon waking up, Naruto felt strangely good. There simply wasn't any way he could describe it. Standing up, he saw the prone form of Chachamaru lying right next to him. He blinked once, twice, three times and she was still there. Then the question started nagging him. 'What is she doing here?'

Feeling slightly guilty, he picked her up in a simple piggy-back. Since he didn't know where she lived, he took her to his dorm. He hoped that she'd wake up before he'd fall asleep.

* * *

Negi was now panicking; Konoka had just offered to take him shopping the next day to get Asuna a present for her upcoming birthday. The bad news was that she promised to kiss him properly when they were next alone with each other. Before he fell asleep, one thought ran through his head. 'You're coming with me Uzumaki.'

* * *

AN: ok Chapter 11 is done. Sorry for the disappointing length, I will try to make longer chapters during the Kyoto arc.

I really just wanted to finish this chapter for now. It was really hard to even start this one; I went through at least 3 different versions, before settling on this one.

Now to justify why Magic is stronger than Chakra.

All the energies in this story are based from three basic components:

Ki or Physical energy comes from one's self; this component is increased through physical training.

Spiritual energy, like Ki it is from one's self. This is the focus and control of the technique. It is increased through mental training and experience.

Natural energy, this is an outside force usually it is incredibly powerful. Capacity is usually increased by connecting to nature.

Chakra is made up from components 1&2. Chakra is faster to utilise, although it lacks the raw power of Magic.

Magic is made up from components 2&3. Magic is literally a force of Nature, although it takes considerably longer to use than Chakra.

More powerful forms are made up from combining all three components:

Sage Mode: This adds Natural energy to one's pool of energy for a limited time. Drawbacks, needs to be still in order to collect and manage Natural energy.

Magia Erebea: Taking Magic into one's self. Depending on the spell absorbed, the user takes on the traits of the spell. Over use leads to Magic corruption

Kanka: Combining of one's Ki and Magic to make attacks several times more powerful. Side effects are extreme exhaustion after extensive use.

Another advanced that is unique only to Naruto is the Nine-tailed Fox's chakra. While it doesn't have natural energy, it is still powerful and corrosive to the user. The only way to draw it and not have the Fox influence him is to separate the Chakra from the Will of the Fox.

Hopefully, this answers any confusion that may have been apparent in the previous chapter.

Please stay tuned for next time!

Krimzon-8 out


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 12: Shopping and start of the trip

"Talking"

'Thinking'

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

Naruto was rather conflicted at the moment. For the first part, he wanted to strangle Negi for dragging him to Harajuku, just so Konoka doesn't take advantage of him. The other half was happy that the mage dragged him away from Ayaka. The class representative wanted him to browse a variety of perfumes and clothes that would hopefully capture Negi's attention. Naruto was five minutes away from complete boredom when Negi simply opened the door, seized the blonde and dragged him away before Ayaka knew.

The train ride was taking longer than he remembered, although that may have been due to Sakurako's constant chatter. Instead, Naruto passed the time by reviewing what he might needed to replace. All there was to replace were a couple kunai and to fix up his clothes. Contrary to what many might think, Naruto is pretty good at sewing and stitching, after all, he didn't get his clothes from a standard store. Most of his clothes were actually hand-made; he used the clothing material from fallen enemies and bought what ever material he could.

After his little review session, he thought of what he could actually buy. Negi told him that Asuna's birthday was coming up. The very thought of birthdays brought memories of his own birthdays. He never got presents or a 'Happy Birthday Naruto', just the same cold stares. Even his few friends from the academy hardly congratulated him. Sure he had wished them a happy birthday, but he never got one back. Yet he was happy, if they were happy, then he would be too.

Naruto simply resolved to buy whatever he thought suitable for Asuna. Even though Negi wanted the blonde along, he did have a couple rules. The first and most important was absolutely no orange was to be visible on his person. Rather loudly, Naruto had voiced his disapproval, but neither Negi nor Konoka would not take no for an answer. The second was that he would have to buy something, both for himself and for Asuna.

An experimental glance down at his clothes, made a sad look cross Naruto's face. He figured that he looked completely ridiculous without any orange; it was a part of who he was and it couldn't be easily tossed aside. The blue cotton shirt really didn't suit him, and he didn't like the denim pants, they were just too damn tight. Add to fact that he didn't have anything to restrain his hair, it just spiked in random directions. Although the female occupants didn't think so, they thought he was rather attractive. The only thing he did like was his priceless necklace was still with him. The top few buttons of his shirt were undone to let people see it.

Negi and Konoka were just idly chatting away next to him. Every now and then, the brunette would steal a glance at the blonde then quickly refocus back to Negi. She really couldn't choose which one was better looking. Negi had that 'pretty boy' look with his neck length dark red hair, while Naruto had a rugged attractiveness, emphasised by his physique and tanned skin.

Upon arriving, every occupant rushed out of the train, as to not get stuck when it set off again. Japanese trains are _always_ on schedule. Amongst the flow of people, Naruto and Negi could swear that someone had purposely touched their rears. In the end the grope only served them to hurry out faster. What didn't help was that someone's hair swept passed Negi's nose, causing him to sneeze.

In an instant Naruto was out of there, jumping clear out of the way, to hell with anyone who saw him. A split second later, following Negi's sneeze, a massive gust of wind blew around the station. Several girls' squeals of surprise assaulted the blonde's ears from his position at the station exit. The only thing Naruto he knew for certain was that Negi was blushing like crazy.

Sure enough, another minute later Negi walked into view with Konoka by his side, his face ablaze with a blush. Without a word, they strode right past Naruto. A few minutes later and they were in the market section. Random stalls were set up and shops were open to the public. People were streaming in and out of buildings; it was still relatively early in the morning so there weren't as many people as usual.

Konoka dragged both teenage males to clothes shops, games shops and what ever store caught her eye. In a half hour, both Negi and Naruto were exhausted. Sure they had heard the rumours that girls loved to shop, but this was just overboard. Even though Negi has had some experience in girl's shopping, he was forced to take a deep breath and basically shout at Konoka to slow down. Bashfully, Konoka slowed her pace to a trot.

Just when Naruto was about to leave the current clothes store, he spotted something of genuine interest. It was a black shirt with an orange spiral in the centre. It looked exactly like the one he had when he was a child. Without hesitation he snatched up a pair of the shirts and bought them. When he was confronted by Negi and Konoka, he was grinning like an idiot. Both of them simply shrugged and walked towards the next store.

Negi picked out a tweed jacket and a pair of cargo pants. Naruto merely waved his hand around with a shrug, saying he didn't care. Konoka told him that it suited him. Quicker than she had ever moved, Konoka grabbed another shirt and held it up against her body for the boys to judge it. Negi gave a thumbs up, Naruto smiled. Just before they left, Naruto swore he heard someone calling his name. The familiarity got his hopes up…it sounded just like Sakurako.

* * *

A few minutes earlier.

"Man, this is great weather!" cried Sakurako.

"Yeah…Let's go to karaoke!" proclaimed Misa Kakizaki. "I've been holding back since nine o'clock!"

"You just said this is great weather and now you want to go to karaoke?" deadpanned the third member, Madoka Kugimiya. "Besides, we have to get clothes for free time on the trip. Don't go fooling around, you two actually need to prepare for once." Just a she finished her sentence; she saw the two others at a stall buying crepes. "God damn it. Listen to what I'm saying!"

Given her outburst, the girl simply had no choice but to submit. Within seconds, she had bought a crepe and was devouring it as well. All hell was let loose in moments, the three girls thundered from store to store, browsing and buying what ever caught their eyes. All that happened before they took three bites from their crepes.

In the middle of drifting towards another shop, one of the party members stopped and stared at something.

"Kakizaki, what's wrong?" Madoka asked. To answer the question, Misa simply raised a hand and pointed to what she was staring at.

Sakurako drew a sharp breath at what she saw. Konoka, Negi and Naruto were standing around a shop. With Naruto standing by the entrance looking bored, left Negi and Konoka were looking through the stock with interest.

"Are they on a date?" Madoka quipped.

"It's possible, but why is Naruto-sensei there?" Misa countered. Like an anvil had just fallen on her head, she gasped before voicing her answer. "Maybe they're going to have a threesome!" she said in horror.

Barely hearing her friends' theories Sakurako shouted out to Naruto, intent on joining him and getting him away from Konoka.

"NARUTO-KUN!" she shouted as she ran out towards the blonde. Sakurako barely got a few metres before being pulled back behind the corner and restrained by her friends. Misa had stopped her shouting while Madoka kept her from squirming free.

"You baka!" Misa scolded. "You can't just go out there shouting like it's the end of the world!" she tried to get it through her friend's head, but Sakurako wouldn't listen, she just continued to struggle. "Madoka keep her down!"

"I'm trying damn it!" Madoka ground out.

* * *

Looking back out into the crowd, Naruto felt a chill go down his spine. For some reason, he felt that he wasn't safe anymore.

* * *

"Listen, I can understand Konoka's situation. You know they live in the same room and all, but what about Naruto?" Misa questioned her friends. Sakurako was still fuming and occasionally taking peeks at Naruto from her hiding spot. "Remember when Iincho got mad about that competition in the baths?" Madoka nodded in understanding, Sakurako didn't hear her and kept focusing on Naruto.

"I bet she was trying to keep Naruto all to herself." Misa exclaimed. Hearing about her 'Naruto-kun', Sakurako swept around and glared holes into her friend. "She even went so far as to call him 'Nii-san. I can only guess that she got so attached to him, that she won't let anyone near him." By the end of Misa's little speech, Sakurako was audibly growling.

Throwing her attention back to blonde, she realised that he had already moved away. Not wasting a second, Sakurako seized her fellow cheerleaders and followed Naruto's trail.

In another moment he was back in sight. Personally, Shiina couldn't care about Negi and Konoka, she just wanted Naruto. Not caring about her friends, for the moment, she stood up and ran towards the blonde before the others caught up to her.

* * *

That strange feeling still hadn't gone away. Naruto was being more cautious than he thought possible. Maybe he was just being a bit too paranoid. It was Sakurako's favourite place to go shopping after all. Just as he was thinking about her, Sakurako suddenly appeared in front of him and latched onto his arm.

"Hey what the… Sakurako?" Naruto asked in a confused fashion. Naruto had to keep himself from sighing, instead he simply muttered, 'speak of the devil.'

"Naruto-kun, I'm glad I found you here." Sakurako chimed. "Are you shopping for clothes? You should have called me, I would've been glad to help you."

"Ahh, kind of. Konoka and Negi dragged me here to get Asuna a birthday present. As well as something for myself." The blonde admitted with a nervous chuckle. The girl who clung to him simply mouthed an 'oh'.

"Well, I've known Asuna since elementary. I know what she'd want. Let's go!" Sakurako pulled on his arm to try to get him moving. Without much thought she pulled him towards a mobile phone store. Inside there were all types of palm sized blocks of plastic, some of them could be folded up and others slid in and out.

Naruto wondered why Asuna would like a block of plastic for a present, he certainly wouldn't. Sure he'd seen people walking around with said pieces of plastic held up to their ears and talking into them. From what he gathered, 'phones' were things that allowed people to talk to each other from long distances. Naruto still didn't see the appeal however; he used radio transmitters on his missions. He really didn't use them much either.

"Wait, doesn't Asuna already have one of these?" Naruto asked, jerking a thumb at the display models.

"Well, yeah but she's had that one for at least a few years now. Asuna's gonna need a replacement." Sakurako answered from the shelves, inspecting each one. "Besides, you should have one also. I mean, what if someone needs to talk to you urgently?"

Naruto really couldn't argue with that, after all when Sasuke left, nobody was informed until Sakura woke up; even then it was at least an hour before he heard about it. Thinking of phones, Sakurako's suddenly started beeping in a short tune. Hearing the tone, she took out her phone and checked the message. After reading it, Sakurako felt a vein on her head bulge from irritation.

Just afterwards, she received an image from the same sender. The image was of Negi and Konoka enjoying a fruity drink together. For some reason the sender had placed love hearts around the two, giving the impression that they were a couple.

Sakurako simply gaped at the picture, unknown to her; Naruto was also looking at the picture with a look of confusion and betrayal.

'Those…those, ah! First they drag me out here, and they don't even care if I leave.' Naruto thought venomously. 'I am so gonna get him back for this.'

Returning to his quest, he picked up a pink phone and looked at it. It seemed flashy and quite tough; he thought it suited Asuna rather well, knowing her temper. Another on the side was a sliding phone that had a camera in it. The phone wasn't bad; he would just need someone to show him how it works. While Sakurako was still gaping at the picture on her phone, Naruto bought the two devices.

The blonde had to physically shake his companion to get her to move again.

* * *

Negi was sitting across from Konoka, who at the moment was recounting her time at Mahora. So far she had only told him about how she had been home schooled back in Kyoto until she was twelve.

"So you and Asuna have only been friends for two years?" Negi summarised. He could accept that answer, after all Konoka and Asuna didn't act like childhood friends. "So what happened to your friends in Kyoto?"

"I never really had any friends in Kyoto, the only person who I played with was Sec-chan." The brunette responded half-heartedly. Her focus was on a few children outside in a playground.

"Sec-chan?"

"Setsuna Sakurazaki, she was my only friend back then. But ever since an incident, she's become distant. I was thrilled when I heard that she was attending Mahora and that we were in the same class, but she doesn't talk to me." Konoka explained, a bit down.

Negi nodded in understanding. After all, once all the girls started coming after him back in Wales, Anya almost refused to speak to him.

"Anyway, let's go Negi-kun. Naruto-kun's probably fine; and we still haven't found anything." Konoka said as she stood up. Negi nodded and stood up to pay the check.

Rather discretely, from a few tables away, two cheerleaders were busy drying their eyes from behind their menus.

"Who knew that Setsuna could be so heartless?" cried Misa. Madoka could only agree by nodding. "Oh crap, they're leaving!" The cheerleader nearly shouted.

* * *

"I will not allow such an act to go unpunished." Ayaka reminded herself and Asuna as they rode the train. Just as she finished she coldly added. "…Even if it is Konoka-san."

"Just calm down Iincho, Konoka doesn't have a single wicked bone in her body." Asuna reasoned, trying to calm her rival's fiery rage.

"You're right; she has two hundred and six!" Ayaka snapped.

"Right right, I'm sure it's a huge plot by Konoka to steal Negi away for herself." Asuna suggested sarcastically, to which Ayaka promptly nodded.

* * *

"Open up and say 'Ahh'." Konoka cooed as she held the ice cream out for Negi.

"Please Konoka-san, this is embarrassing." Negi replied as he tried to safely deny Konoka's request.

"Come on, don't be shy." The brunette encouraged.

"Fine," Negi mumbled as he hesitantly took a lick.

Just a bit back, Misa and Madoka were dressed in completely different clothes. Misa had somehow changed her skin tone and wore a sailor uniform. Madoka, on the other hand was dressed like a punk, ripped jeans, a jacket and a backwards cap that hid her hair.

"Man, they're getting too close for comfort there." Madoka warned, and then smirked evilly. "Time to get going Misa!" she commanded as she pushed said girl towards the supposed couple.

Misa was sent into a wild run, she couldn't stop herself from crashing into Negi and Konoka. As the ice cream splattered on the ground, Kakizaki shouted apologies and trotted off in a hurry.

"Heh, a chance!" Madoka cheered herself on as she ran full pelt after Misa. As she passed Negi and Konoka, she intentionally stepped on the ruined ice cream. "Gah, why you little…" Madoka had to put on a male voice to hide her own. "You know the cleaning bill for these shoes is one million yen, so you better pay up you punk!" She stood up and grabbed Konoka around the shoulders. "Or would you rather I take your girlfriend here?"

Negi fell onto his backside from the sudden shock of being threatened. He certainly didn't have one million yen on him, and just as the wind blew, something tickled his nose.

ACHOO!

Just as he sneezed, Madoka's pants fell down, causing everyone around her to see her panties.

Only one thought went through Negi's mind at the time. 'What the?'

* * *

After all that had happened, Madoka and Misa retreated to a safe distance, leaving Negi and Konoka to talk amongst themselves. Konoka was thanking the teacher on how he saved her, even though Negi had no idea of what she was talking about. To him, all he did was sneeze and the assailant's pants fell down.

In just a few moments, they were headed towards a scenic area, one that wasn't too far out of town.

As discreet as they have been all day, the cheerleading duo followed them. The 'couple' stopped and looked out over the city, while the cheerleaders hid in a nearby bush. Admittedly, Negi was still a bit tired from his battle with Evangeline. Add that to Konoka's near-endless chatter, he promptly fell asleep while leaning on the railing. Somehow, even in sleep, he kept his limbs rigid enough to support his weight.

It was quite a while before the brunette figured out why Negi wasn't answering her questions. As her eyes started drifting down his facial contours, her mind flashed and she was instantly reminded about the card, about how if she kissed Negi properly, she would get a card just like Asuna's. Yet she hesitated, she knew that if she moved him, he might actually fall down and be injured.

A few more inner-turmoils later, and Konoka decided to not kiss Negi, at least not yet. As luck would have it, Naruto and Sakurako both arrived not three minutes after Konoka made her decision.

"Eh, Konoka-san?" Naruto said as he walked closer, Sakurako's arm looped around his. Konoka gave a short wave to greet the two. "Negi!" Naruto called, though he didn't get a response from him.

Sending Konoka a questioning gaze, she simply gestured that he was asleep. The blonde, for one, was kind of shocked to see someone sleep standing up. Although, when he thought back to his academy days, he often slept with his eyes open. It helped him from getting into trouble with Iruka-sensei.

The three just stood around, looking over the city, chatting about what they bought and such, although Sakurako told her how Naruto became her boyfriend. Naruto kind of had a feeling in his spine, like he was being watched. He thought the feeling was coming from the bush behind him, but every time he tried to take a look, no one was there.

Another ten or so minutes, Negi had woken up. Just in time to see Ayaka and Asuna run into the area. At the same time, the cheerleaders stepped out from their hiding place.

Ayaka took a moment to catch her breath; Asuna didn't need such but still let her blonde companion make the first move.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Ayaka screeched, living up to her nickname courtesy of Naruto. "Teachers are forbidden from fraternising with students!" she declared. Naruto cocked a brow in a questioning fashion.

"He is fifteen; Imouto-chan. Negi has needs just as much as we do." Naruto reasoned.

"B-but, N-Negi-sensei was on a date with Konoka-san!" Ayaka pathetically accused.

"No, they weren't." With her Onii-san's answer, Ayaka could barely do anything but gape pleadingly. Naruto merely motioned for Negi and Konoka to explain.

Negi took a step forward and brought out his gift.

"It's one day early, oh well." He extended his arms so that his hands were close to Asuna. "Here, Asuna-san. For the twenty first of April, Happy birthday!" he announced, much to the shock of the two cheerleaders and Ayaka. Asuna face brightened up bright red from the attention. "I was looking for a gift with Konoka-san since this morning."

To the red-haired girl's surprise, another gift popped up, this time from Naruto.

"Sakurako-chan said that your current phone would be on its last legs soon, so I got you a new one, Happy Birthday." Naruto told her with a grin on his face.

Suddenly, the disguised cheerleaders brought out the stuff they bought before Negi and Konoka could and presented it to Asuna. The poor girl's hands were full of gifts that piled up to her chin, and yet she still smiled.

"Thank you, everyone… It's just so sudden." She was on the verge of shedding tears of happiness. All of a sudden, Asuna tossed all her gifts into the air and hugged Negi and Konoka, leaving Naruto, Ayaka and the cheerleaders scrambling to grab the falling gifts before they hit the ground.

"Alright, since we've come all this far, let's all go to Karaoke! We'll have Asuna's birthday party!" Sakurako shouted out once all the gifts were accounted for.

A short while into the walk, Asuna pulled back to tell something to Konoka.

"I'm sorry for doubting you, Konoka." To which the clueless brunette simply smiled and said, 'eh?'

The rest of the evening was spent in a private room in the Karaoke bar. They only took breaks for food and drink. Most of the group enjoyed themselves; the exception was Naruto, who absolutely refused to get up on stage and sing. So it came as a rather big shock when he actually took a look at the song list. It just so happens that his room mate likes to listen to a band on the list rather often. The blonde popped a track in and started singing. To his friends' shock, he actually sounded better than the original version.

Negi was up next, he spent an entire half-hour searching for a song with English lyrics, since he wasn't fluent enough in Japanese to actually sing. Asuna was surprisingly good, especially when she and Ayaka did a little duet.

The cheerleaders obviously had a lot of practise and sung each line flawlessly, and finally, Konoka wasn't exactly the best, but at least she wasn't the worst.

It was roughly ten at night when they started to leave. The group waited for another few minutes waiting for a train, all the while Sakurako was fawning over Naruto about his singing. Negi was also complimented, but wasn't completely smothered by them like Naruto.

The eight of them finally reached the dormitories at half-past. It was a rather taxing day, but sadly for Naruto, he couldn't get much rest. Sakurako asked him for help with some last minute homework. Naruto being the caring person he is, and add to the fact that she was using the 'puppy eyes' he just couldn't say no.

Currently, he was kneeling next to her at the glass topped table, giving her various tips and pointers on the English language.

"Thanks again, Naruto-kun, I really needed the help." Sakurako said, for the fifth time that evening.

"It's no problem." Naruto dismissed. "I'm glad to help. Just remember what Negi taught you, and it'll be fine. Is there anything else that you need?"

Sakurako tapped her finger on her chin, her 'thinking pose', Naruto had dubbed it. "Nope!" she finally announced. "But, you know, I think I should reward you…"

Naruto was slightly worried as she trailed off. Knowing Sakurako, she'd do something hasty and much to his embarrassment.

"How about a kiss?" Sakurako suddenly suggested, causing Naruto to flinch slightly and start protesting.

"I-it's fine, Sakurako-chan! Really!" he stuttered, desperate to dissuade her.

"But I insist Naruto-kun, you gave me one." She pouted.

Naruto was suddenly reminded about that day, when he and Sakurako went out to shop for clothes. He almost completely forgot about that evening. His thoughts were brought back to the present when he felt her hands pressing on his chest.

"So where would you like it? On the cheek or the lips?" she asked in a suggestive tone. Not even giving Naruto a chance to respond, she immediately continued. "Since you can't decide, I'll do it for you."

Sakurako began to slowly lower herself down onto him, not even hearing the weak 'Wait a minute!' that came from Naruto.

Quickly and yet somehow drawing it out, she leaned in and planted a kiss right onto his cheek. A second later, she lifted herself of him and winked at him.

"See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" She teased. "Help me out again, Naruto-kun. And I'll make sure to give you a little something extra next time, 'kay?"

All Naruto could do was nod dumbly and pick himself up, he needed to get some sleep.

* * *

The next day was a regular school day, though the people who attended Asuna's birthday party slept in. Well most of them anyway, the birthday girl didn't because she still had her paper route.

The end result was that six students and the one teacher were late to class. They barely had any time to mark the role before the bell rang. The day itself was mostly another party for Asuna. She didn't really do anything the entire time, and during the breaks the class celebrated.

Negi on the other hand was discussing the schedule for the next day. The train would arrive at Kyoto at roughly three PM. That left them to have about an hour or so to take in the sites and get settled for the next few days. The second day would be a group activity. The third was individual activities. The fourth and final is to be a free day, the students are allowed to do what they want.

Shortly after the discussion retired to the room, awaiting the next class.

Before Naruto knew it, the day was over and he was having dinner with Ayaka for the last time in about a week.

He had to admit, she was a good cook, much better than he could ever hope to be. While the meal itself was nothing special to Ayaka, it was like having a true family for Naruto.

After dinner, he had to help his Imouto-chan pick out something that would catch Negi's eye during the individual free time. Her attempt was a rather flashy dress, which Naruto labelled as 'too fancy.' The next was too dry for anyone's taste, leading him to wonder why she picked it in the first place. Things went like this until quite a while into the night.

When Ayaka came out wither last outfit, Naruto almost fainted. A shirt wide U-neck stretched down to reveal quite a bit of cleavage, over this she wore a tight-fitting jacket that she zipped up to emphasize her chest. Her leggings were tight jeans that threatened to split at the seams, but for some reason they held tight, letting her show off her curves. Forced to look up, he noticed what little make-up she wore somehow made him stare at her eyes. Her flowing golden hair was tied up into a single ponytail that ended at her waist.

Naruto was actually too stunned to label it as anything, so Ayaka deemed it worthy. If he were able to read thoughts like Negi, he'd know that she just wanted to find out what he liked. That day really messed Ayaka up, seeing Naruto-niichan accompanied by Sakurako, not to mention Negi with Konoka. She was also surprised that he could sing so well. Ayaka would never say it, but she thought that Naruto's voice was almost as majestic as her own. It was like he was made to inspire and change people, he was certainly changing her. To anyone else observing her act around her Nii-san, they would say that she had a small crush on him. There were a few problems however, namely Sakurako. She was too close to Naruto for her liking; Ayaka actually found herself being jealous of her.

Ayaka shook those traitorous thoughts from her head; she mentally berated herself for not trying her best to get Negi-sensei. She would need a cold shower to get herself focused. That is exactly what she did after packing her things.

Naruto on the other hand, couldn't get the sight of Ayaka in such revealing clothes out of his head. He decided to start packing to get his mind off things; after all he was responsible for the girls' well being.

* * *

Negi was so anxious that he had trouble getting to sleep; after he had gotten back from Asuna's party he started packing. According to Evangeline, Kyoto is where one of his father's houses is. It just might give him a clue on how to find the Thousand Master. Still there was another thing to be concerned about. The Kansai Magic Association, he needed to deliver a letter to them and keep his student's safe.

Asuna was already involved in this, and so was Naruto. Negi figured that he'd have to rely on them for quite a while. Naruto had already proven that he was reliable, Asuna still has to. Her performance both in Library Island and during the dodge ball match suggested that she was a proficient athlete. Her Pactio card suggested that her artefact would be an 'evil banishing sword' or something, if his Latin was up to par.

Negi stopped thinking to much of that fiery girl; he really didn't want his 'little spring onion' to go stiff when it was so close to morning. Konoka would just giggle and blush, Asuna would probably try to rip his head off.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

There it was, the alarm had finally gone off! Negi didn't waste any time leaping out and pulling his clothes on. Without thinking of even waking the girls, he scribbled a note down on why he wasn't there and left it on the fridge. In a minute, Negi was out of the building and running towards the train station.

He was rather hoping that some of his students would join him on his way; a glance backwards suggested that it wasn't going to happen at all. The girls of 3-A were all probably enjoying the blissful embrace of sleep. Negi turned back around just in time to stop himself from running right into Naruto, who was rubbing his hands in anticipation. Usually this wouldn't be strange, but Naruto was looking back towards the dormitories with a sadistic grin smeared over his face. In a very strange way, he bore a very strange resemblance to Jiraiya, his one time sensei.

Negi coughed loud enough into his hand to get Naruto's attention. The blonde snapped his attention to Negi as if he just noticed him. Naruto simply blinked once, pointed at the dormitories and held up three fingers. Slowly he began counting them off. When he reached zero, the deafening sound of church bells ringing blasted out from the dormitories.

In the distance, Negi could hear cursing and swearing from the dormitories. How he heard them over the bells and Naruto's cackling was beyond him. The blonde was laughing at the mental image of Ayaka waking up to the sound of church bells. He imagined that she'd have bloodshot eyes and that she'd mistake the sounds for a wedding. In reality, he wasn't far off.

Ayaka was awakened by the bells and she did indeed mistake them for signalling a wedding. Fearing that Negi was already wed, she burst out of her room, still putting her clothes on. With all due haste, she made a bead for the room of Asuna, Konoka and Negi. What she saw made her breakdown into tears.

Standing before the door was Asuna, clad in a wedding gown, having her cheek caressed softly by Negi who wore a tuxedo. Before Asuna could object, she had her lips locked with the mage.

The thing that Ayaka didn't notice was the clone of Naruto peeking around the corner. The clone, fearful that it couldn't keep its laughter contained, quickly dispersed itself. At the same time the clone disappeared, so did the illusion of Asuna and Negi.

Naruto received the memories of his devious clone and burst out with a fresh wave of laughter. He left the clone to make sure things went off without a hitch, but he never suspected that it would actually pull a prank. Wiping a tear from his eye, Naruto started walking towards the train station with a confused Negi trailing behind.

'One down, who knows how many next!' Naruto thought to himself, as he struggled to keep a straight face.

* * *

AN: Chapter 12 complete!

Yeah for the previous week, my brother came home. And he took a bit of time away from me.

I intended for this chapter to be much longer, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

Another thing of note, my fellow author/friend **panda-kun77** has drawn up the scene between Naruto and Sakurako in this chapter. Please visit his deviantART page, **PandaDude17**, if you wish to view it. Nice work man!

Not sure if I should say anything else. If you want to review, be my guest, I won't demand anything of my faithful readers.

Until next time Krimzon-8 out!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 13: The Train and a Shrine

"Talking"

'Thinking'

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

Naruto and Negi had to wait for at least fifteen minutes until the girls arrived, most of them with bloodshot eyes and drooping postures. A complete opposite of their teacher's bright and happy attitude they were subjected to. Although the rest Naruto's class had already arrived. As each one entered the station, Negi marked them off the role. When they all finally arrived, Shizuna-sensei called for the groups to assemble before they boarded the train.

Group one, was the one that Naruto liked and feared equally. He liked it mostly because it had Sakurako; he feared it because of the twins. Naruto wondered that if Fuuka somehow found out that it was him who set up the bells she wouldn't stop asking him how he did it. After all, they did manage to prank Negi, which is an impressive feat all by itself. But the ones that they did paled in comparison to the ones he would be pulling over the trip.

Group two featured the two smartest girls of their year, Chao Lingshen and Satomi Hakase. Coming along for that ride was the class Kunoichi, Kaede. Naruto tried to stay away from her, but that didn't stop her from saying that she would enjoy herself, that one sentence sent chills up his spine. Aside from her, there were another three, Ku Fei, the martial arts champion of Mahora, Kasuga Misora who worked part time at the local chapel and finally Satsuki Yotsuba, who sold Nikumans every where she went.

Group three, was almost one which both males wanted to avoid. For Negi it was Ayaka, who after the morning torture was determined to win Negi over, first by inviting him to a private car on the train and then trying to seduce him. For Naruto, it was Kazumi, who was still taking regular pictures of everything, including him. Chizuru Naba, easily the girl with the largest bust size, kept looking back and forth between Negi and Naruto, probably trying to decide who would have better luck for the day. Natsumi Murakami was rather nervous because of her immediate friends' chest sizes. To her, it made absolutely no sense as to how they got all the luck. Chisame Hasagawa on the other hand, wished that she was somewhere else at the moment.

Group Four mainly had the athletic girls, the majority of them being half-vampire but without knowing it. Makie was quick to pounce on Negi, asking and begging him to hang out with them for free activity day. Ayaka, who stayed behind to watch over, stopped her from taking Negi away. Yuuna and Akira were a bit worried about Ako being a bit sick; apparently she ate too many Nikumans for breakfast. Mana Tatsumiya was concerned to an extent, but that was merely out of kindness.

The fifth group was one that Negi trusted most, since it consisted of Asuna, Konoka and the Library trio. The library trio talked amongst each other, Asuna glared at Naruto, somehow knowing that he pulled the prank that morning and Konoka happily chatted with Negi.

Just as Negi was about to walk away, Naruto pulled him back.

"Hold it, Negi. You've still one group left." Naruto reminded him.

Hearing that, Negi lightly slapped his forehead as if to punish himself. "Setsuna Sakurazaki, Zazie Rainyday, Chachamaru Karakuri and Evangeline A.K. McDowell." He listed off, becoming slightly worried when he came to Evangeline.

"Don't worry Negi-sensei, Master is unable to travel away from Mahora Academy." Chachamaru said, suddenly appearing in the doorway and scaring Naruto enough to fall face first onto the floor.

"Ahh, I see. Well at least you are here Chachamaru, Setsuna, and Zazie." Negi noted that there were only three of them compared to the other five or six in groups. "Having three in a group, doesn't quite seem right. We might not be able to track all of them." He contemplated.

"You could split group six up, y'know." Naruto pointed out, now standing straight. Negi thought this over, if added one girl to each of the others, each group would have six members.

"Chachamaru, Zazie, Setsuna, we're going to split up group six for easier management." Negi stated. "Chachamaru do you mind joining group one?"

"Not at all, Negi-sensei."

"Zazie, same for group three?" The silent circus magician simply nodded whilst stroking her feathered friend. "Setsuna, that leaves you with group five, agree?"

"Hai, sensei." She responded, half-heartedly.

A quick check with the group leaders, confirmed that the newcomers were welcome in their new groups.

Chachamaru did not expect for the twins and the cheerleaders to be so accepting of her. Mostly due to her usual conversations which consisted of 'look it's the robot' and 'stay away from us, freak.' For a moment, Chachamaru actually smiled sincerely.

Ayaka was practically the only one who could understand Zazie, so she really didn't have much of a problem with it, especially if Negi trusted her to do so.

Setsuna was reasonably conflicted. For one, she was glad that she'd be able to protect Ojou-sama, but the other reason was that she wasn't entirely comfortable with being so close to her. Not since that incident at the river, had she gathered the courage to speak more than a few sentences to Ojousama.

She shook those thoughts out of her head; regret does nothing to achieve one's goals. Setsuna would be able to protect Konoka, which was all that was important.

* * *

As the train started up, Negi took the moment to announce the schedule to the students, only for him to hit from behind when a cart carrying lunch arrived. The staff apologised, but Negi waved it off saying that it was his fault for being in the way.

Naruto in the meanwhile was taking a quick nap in his seat. Fortunately, Sakurako was in the same row. While Naruto was out of it, she took the time to wonder over, talk the person next to him into moving to take a walk around the train, take the now vacant seat and rest her head on his shoulder. She let the steady clickity-clack of the rails lull her into a deep sleep.

After finishing his little speech, Negi took a little while to see what the girls were doing. Several of the girls were playing a card game, in which the players battled against each other using magic spells.

"Magic, you don't say." He stated sarcastically. It seemed at the moment that Yuna was winning against Haruna. Yue was playing a friendly game against Nodoka and Makie was having a 'serious' match against Fuuka Narutaki.

As Negi walked away, conversing silently with Chamo, Haruna lost her fight with Yuna when she used a fire spell. To her defence, Haruna claimed that she was slowly defeating Yuna with her 'Horrible Frog Perdition' card. As she reached for Yuna's spoils, her hand brushed against something slimy. Taking a curious and worried look, she screamed as a frog jumped out from her bag and onto her face. Soon after, chaos ensued. Hundreds of frogs suddenly popped out from the strangest of places, there were a few that came from bags, some even came from the food boxes they were given.

As the girl's screamed throughout the carriage, Naruto smiled. While he pretended to be asleep, he wasn't known as a master prankster for no reason. Even as Sakurako was leaning on him, he was performing hand seals. Specifically, they were Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey and Ram. He finished the Jutsu by placing his hand on the wall next to him, nobody even saw the seals scrawling out from his palm, now slick with a small spot of blood.

However, his fun was short lived. Ku Fei and some of the other students were able to capture most of them and place them in a bag. Sakurako finally stirred, and promptly screamed when a frog jumped onto her lap. As if the amphibian was going to kill her, she held tight to the blonde teen next to her. With a simple tap on the frog's head, courtesy of Naruto, the frog popped out of existence.

After all the frogs popped back to their realm, the train car was at rest. Everyone calmed down and resumed what they were doing, except for Negi. Instead, the teenaged teacher panicked a bit; there was no telling whether or not that the sudden summoning of frogs was an indirect attack by the Kansai Magic Association. After everyone had calmed down, he felt around his coat to see if he still had the letter he needed to deliver. As luck would have it, he did, a simple peek inside his coat confirmed it. No need to reveal it to any possible enemies in the area.

It only seemed like a few minutes after he sat down that they had arrived at Kyoto station. His students were bouncing around, trying to get out of their seats and out the door as fast as possible.

As he watched the girls fidget with excitement, Negi thought of why he had come to the ancient city in the first place. 'We're here, maybe, just maybe. I'll be able to find some clues to my father's whereabouts.'

"Alright everybody, prepare to disembark!" Negi shouted over the announcer. His call was met by a rather large acknowledgement from the girls, and a lazy 'Hai, Hai' from the car's only other male occupant.

The group left the train, called the role and caught the bus to Kiyomizu Temple. Once they arrived, Naruto had to pose for two group photos, one was of his class and the other was with Negi's class. For the latter, Sakurako climbed up onto his shoulders and posed while he stood behind the other two cheerleaders.

When they actually got into the temple proper, Fuuka challenged someone to jump off the stage of the shrine. For a moment, it seemed like Kaede was going to do it, but Ayaka stopped her from doing anything stupid. Before anyone else could try and jump off, Yue started lecturing her classmates about the origins of the temple. By the end of it, Yuuna summed up what everyone was thinking.

"She's a Freak!" she shouted. Only for Nodoka and Haruna to claim that is the stuff that Yue likes.

Negi was looking out over the city, trying to figure out where his father's house might be. It could be anywhere among the trees. Even if he did have four days, he could never find it in that time.

All the girls' focus was broken when Yue mentioned a place that tells love fortunes. Then she pointed to a location downhill.

"Just down there is the famous Otowa waterfall. They say that if you drink from those three streams you'll say healthy, do well in school and even get married." She informed the class.

When she finished, Negi was already being pushed towards the place by Makie and the twins, causing both Ayaka and Nodoka to panic.

Naruto on the other hand, didn't get a warning. He never really heard Yue's information, so it came to a shock when Sakurako grabbed him by the arm and dragged him away, first to the fortune telling stall, where Naruto's fortune was incredibly bad. Sakurako encouraged him to keep drawing, saying that he's bound to get one that says remarkably great. Despite her encouragement, everyone that he did keep drawing was consistently bad. By the end of that ordeal, Naruto was slightly depressed, kneeling by the edge of the stall scribbling something in the ground with his finger.

Next stop was a stone that told people their love fortunes. Naruto was confused at the entire idea, but he went after Sakurako anyway. He arrived to see Ayaka, Makie and Nodoka all in a competition to who can get to the other stone first. So far Ayaka was winning, with Makie close behind. Nodoka on the other hand was completely off.

Just before Ayaka and Makie reached the stone, the ground beneath them collapsed. After that there was a series of frog calls coming from the newly formed pit. Very shortly after that, the two girls screamed their heads off. Several of the girls helped Ayaka and Makie out of the pit, Naruto would have helped but he was entertained by Nodoka, who actually reached the other stone somehow.

As Negi helped pull Makie out of the pit, he couldn't help but wonder whether or not it was a trap set by the Kansai Magic Association. Although there wasn't any evidence to support the theory, he fully suspected them.

As soon as the girls could walk, they were off to the Otowa waterfall. Naruto was yet again dragged along by Sakurako. After demanding to know which stream was which, the girls of 3-A plunged their drinking cups into the stream for marriage. Naruto being the unlucky one that day, had the privilege of sharing cups with Sakurako. Three cups later and he was stumbling around the place. To anyone who saw him, they could swear that he was doing a Kabuki dance, with all the hopping he was doing. That is until he fell face first into the dirt, along with at least half of 3-A. If someone were to listen to him, they would hear something similar to "No! Not the Ramen! Take my life instead!"

As the girls got drunk, Negi climbed up the waterfall, and discovered that someone had actually spiked the 'Marriage' stream with sake that was a least twice as powerful as the usual stuff. Hell he figured that one sip would make the average man drunk. It was a wonder that Naruto was able to stay standing for as long as he did.

Now wasn't the time to think on such things. Some of the other teachers were approaching, and he needed to hide the drunken students fast. And he covered them up as best he could, which was to say, he, with the help of some of the students that weren't drunk, placed them under a nearby stall, which made them seem like they were sleeping.

When Shizuna-sensei approached, Negi took the time to explain that some of the girls got tired and collapsed; therefore they would have to drag them to the bus. Luckily for Negi, she bought the lie.

* * *

After all the students were in bed, Negi retired to the lobby of the hotel. Where he was subjected to Chamo's incessant claims about how Setsuna was the one who pulled all those horrible strings. How he came to that conclusion was a mystery to Negi. A little while later, Asuna came over and questioned him on what was going on. While he didn't really want to reveal anything to her, he did promise to let her help next time he was in trouble. In the end, he was forced to tell her, not only because of pressure from her, but from Chamo also.

Somehow, the subject got shifted to Setsuna again. This time however, Negi remembered something from the class roster. Just as he thought, under Setsuna's portrait, it mentioned Kyoto. The ermine mistook this and proclaimed that she was indeed a spy for the Kansai  
Magic Association.

Before Negi could intervene and tell Chamo off, Shizuna-sensei arrived and informed him that the staff's bath time was almost up.

"Go on Negi, we'll talk about this later." Asuna dismissed Negi. "Besides, I don't want to hear about you not having any baths, understand?" she added threateningly. Not even giving her an answer, Negi bolted towards the men's bath area.

In another three minutes, Negi was naked and relaxing in the middle of the baths. Chamo was right beside him sipping a mini cup of sake. Still, the little ermine insisted that Negi be worried about Setsuna ambushing them. Although the Mage did agree that if she did attack, he'd be at a terrible disadvantage. Naruto was out of it and Asuna wouldn't be of any help against a swordsman.

His thoughts were distracted when he heard the door slide open and the pitter-patter of feet on stone. Curiosity getting the better of him, he looked over the stone he was resting on. He was expecting to see another male teacher, not a naked girl. Certainly not Setsuna Sakurazaki. Even though his sister taught him not to spy on naked women, he just couldn't move his eyes away from her. Her frame looked rather fragile, but at the same time, held an amount of strength. Her pale skin and dark hair contrasted beautifully. The soft contours of her face just captured his attention and held it hostage.

Before any more perverse thoughts could invade his mind, Negi shook himself out of it and painfully dragged his focus away from Setsuna's naked form. 'Holy crap, I'm peeping. I have shamed my family.' He mentally berated himself.

"This is troublesome… If Negi-sensei is indeed a mage, then I should take some action." Setsuna suddenly whispered, unaware that she could be heard, by Negi. The mage in question was having an internal conflict. Should he attack now? Or listen to what she has to say? "But, I doubt that he'd trust me so easily. And there is the Issue of Naruto-sempai, from what Mana has told me, he's a ninja, and a formidable one at that." Setsuna continued, still unaware of Negi's eavesdropping.

'Seems like she just wants to talk or reason with me. Chamo was wrong all along." Negi thought while looking at the white ermine. 'Now how do I get out of here without her discovering me?' He silently questioned himself, racking his brain for an answer.

The easiest way would be to swim underwater, make as little noise as possible and exit through the men's change room. Problem was, water transmits sound faster than through air, so getting out silently would be tricky. Another flaw was that Setsuna was a trained swordsman; she could probably hear his heartbeat from ten feet away if she wanted to.

As if a light bulb lit up above his head, he figured out a way of getting out without her seeing him. As quietly as he could, Negi whispered an incantation.

Setsuna was about to step into the warm water of the open air bath, when the oil-lit lamps suddenly puffed out along with a relatively strong gust of wind. In the dark, she heard a single splash that reverberated all around the area, so she couldn't find the source. A few seconds later, the lights came on, revealing nothing out of the ordinary.

Still suspicious, she gently placed her sword on the edge of the pool and lowered herself into the water carefully. For what seemed like the first time during the entire day, Setsuna let herself relax, only to be alert inexactly ten seconds, when a pair of high pitched screams pierced the air. In an instant, she was out of the water and sprinting towards the girl's change room, where the scream had come from.

Yanking the door open, she was shown the horrifying image of Asuna and Konoka being stripped of their underwear by small paper monkeys!

Setsuna wasn't able to take the sight any longer. The very image of Konoka-Ojousama being having her clothes taken was unbearable. But her undergarments and by shikigami? That was downright enraging.

Almost forgetting herself, the dark haired swordswoman drew her blade and slashed the monkeys into oblivion, freeing both Konoka-Ojousama and Asuna from the perverted shikigami.

Amongst the nearby trees, a shadow grunted in dissatisfaction and quickly vanished.

Setsuna heard the low grunt, looked towards the trees and growled out a curse.

"Sec-chan, I'm not sure I understand the situation, but you saved us right?" Konoka exclaimed.

The swordswoman, barely let out a 'no problem' before dashing away to get changed. She needed to erect a barrier against shikigami, in case the enemy tries something similar again.

* * *

Flying above the open air bath, Negi saw the whole thing, except for the monkey's stripping Asuna and Konoka. While that may have been a sight he wanted to see, he figured that Asuna might not have taken it too well.

Actually, he would have to get out of there to make sure that he doesn't get spotted when the rest of group 5 show up.

Resolving to confront Setsuna the next day, Negi silently flew towards the male change rooms. After all, he was still dressed in nothing but a wet towel around his waist. Of how many girls in his class would kill to see that sight, Negi didn't want to know.

If he stayed any longer, he would have heard Konoka, telling Asuna about how she knew Setsuna.

* * *

After changing, Negi decided to wait in the lobby for Asuna. But when said red-headed girl returned, she was still being told her tale from Konoka.

The brunette, walked on ahead to go to bed. Asuna stayed behind, Negi seemingly wanted to talk to her.

"Konoka, I've never seen her looking so sad before." Negi observed.

"She's a bit upset because Setsuna won't talk to her. They were, like old friends I suppose. But Setsuna just stopped talking to her after an incident where Konoka fell into a river." Asuna relayed to Negi.

"We should talk to Setsuna. Try and convince her to at least have a conversation with Konoka."

"By the way, has Chamo changed his mind about her yet?"

"Hmm, I'm still suspicious, but she mentioned that she wasn't our enemy." Chamo piped in.

"Give me a moment, need to get the others to bed." Negi spoke when he arrived at 3-A's designated hall. "Alright girls, time for bed. Return to your rooms." Before he could walk away, Kaede came up to him.

"Pretty quiet for the first night, eh, Negi-sensei?" she asked sarcastically. Unfortunately Negi didn't catch the tone.

"Naruto's still drunk, as are the noisy girls." He said flatly. On his shoulder, Chamo chuckled nervously.

"By the way Negi-sensei," Kaede said in a low voice. "Should any trouble brew, don't hesitate to ask for my assistance." The teacher simply nodded and continued on his way.

They found Setsuna down by the entrance, placing some paper tags above the door.

"Setsuna, what are you doing?" Negi asked kindly.

"Ah, Negi-sensei, I actually wanted to speak to you about something." She replied after placing another tag.

"If it's about _that_, then don't worry about Asuna's presence, she already knows." He said, heavily emphasising 'that'.

The swordswoman caught the drift, and led them to a small café like area. After getting comfortable, she began.

"First of all, I'd just like to clarify that I am your ally, not your enemy. Since a young age, it has been my duty to protect Konoka-Ojousama. By any means necessary, of course. I am trained in the Shinmei-Ryuu sword arts, specialising in defeating Demons. I guarantee you; they will be invaluable skills against our opponents, especially if they insist on using Eastern Magic." Setsuna explained, trying to get her sensei to understand why she is an ally.

"My charms are meant to compliment my swordsmanship. I can use them for a variety of uses. What you saw me doing back there…" she gestured to the entrance. "…was finishing a barrier to repel Shikigami."

"Now that's out of the road, I can get to the more important matters." Setsuna resumed after a short pause. "I believe that the enemy is escalating their interference. The spiking of the Otowa waterfall was their doing, as was the pitfall full of frogs."

"What about the frogs on the train?" Chamo suddenly asked.

"I doubt that was the enemy, as to who summoned them. I have no clue." She answered truthfully. "Negi-sensei, you're an accomplished Western Mage, what are your views on the situation?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, Setsuna-san, but I'm not really all that accomplished. In fact I'm not even a full mage as of yet." Negi admitted. "Can you tell us more about the enemy?"

"From what I can tell, they are most likely Onmyou Charm-users. They are usually vulnerable when chanting, as are you Negi-sensei. Charm-users utilise summoned demons to defend themselves, similar to western 'partners'. Another thing, Shinmei-Ryuu swordsmen are likely to be our enemies as well."

"Wait… so you're a Shinmei-Ryuu as well, but you're going to be fighting other Shinmei-Ryuu?" Negi quickly asked.

"Yes, they would see me as a traitor, since I left Kansai for Kanto. In my defence, I wanted to protect Ojousama, so I had no choice then she left for Kanto. As long as I can protect Konoka-Ojousama…I will be satisfied." Setsuna replied solemnly.

"Well, now I understand. Sakurazaki-san, I'm glad that you don't hate Konoka, that's all I needed to know! A friend of a friend is a friend, right? I'll help too!" Asuna broke the silence rather abruptly.

"Then it's decided, we'll protect Class 3-A from the Kansai Magic association." Negi announced, disregarding where they were. "And Naruto-san too, when he wakes up." He added as an afterthought.

"Naruto-san knows about magic too?" Setsuna asked, seemingly worried now.

"Yeah, he helped out with Evangeline." Negi explained. "Pretty damn good if you ask me. Why so worried?"

"It's just that, well. The counter to Shinmei-Ryuu is either another Shinmei-Ryuu, or a Ninja, which Naruto-san is."

"Naruto's a Ninja?" Exclaimed Negi, Asuna and Chamo at the same time.

"I thought that Kaede was the only Ninja in Mahora." Negi pondered.

"How the hell can that guy be a Ninja? He's got blonde hair, not to mention he's easily spotted in a crowd!" Asuna quipped.

"Don't underestimate him Ane-san; he was strong enough to take on Chachamaru-Ane-san. Not to mention he stood up to one of Aniki's more powerful attacks." Chamo warned. "Also, he's super-fast; I bet he could run laps around Aniki here, without even trying."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Chamo." Negi snapped. "Anyway, I'll take first shift tonight; you two guard the student's area." He commanded, walking towards the entrance.

"Hai, Hai." Asuna waved off lazily, trudging towards her room.

"Aniki, you got your staff and card?" Chamo asked when they got out of earshot.

"I've got my ring and the card, which should be good enough, right?"

"You still remember how to use the cards right?"

"How could I forget?" He asked sarcastically.

"Just making sure, Aniki, ya can never be too careful."

"I know, even if I don't follow it to plan all the time." He sighed. "Let's just get out of here first, and then we can talk."

Just as he was about to walk through the sliding doors, a cart carrying towels rammed into him. The result was that the towels were scattered everywhere and the cart toppled. After recovering himself, Negi scrambled to pick up the towels and place them back into the cart. Apologising to the woman pushing the cart, he made his way outside.

If he had hung around, he would have seen the devilish smirk on the woman's face when she replaced her glasses.

"He doesn't look that bad does he? In just a few years he could be quite the catch. Too bad you're the enemy, Negi Springfield."

* * *

AN: Ok I really wanted to continue this one, but I just can't do it. Actually I'm considering skipping the next battle, seems pretty tedious with just writing up these manga sections. After all, most of you know how it goes anyway.

Ok, from my decision, I've made some changes to chapters 2-12. Might as well go back and read them eh? ;-)

But if you don't want to, I don't blame you. Just keep in mind that I wrote this chapter with the current way this story is going. If you want to understand, then you will have to go back and re-read it. I don't really want you guys to suffer. I just want you to understand where I'm going and clear up any confusion.

Still, I reckon I'm going to get some flames from this.

Till next time, Krimzon-8 out.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 14: Revealed Secrets

"Talking"

'Thinking'

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

"Seriously? I can summon Asuna from here with this?" Negi asked, looking sceptically at Chamo.

"What you don't trust me Aniki? I've been familiars to many different mages, all of them rather powerful and with partners." The ermine stated proudly.

"Being that kid's pet doesn't count." Negi commented dryly as he walked on, ignoring Chamo's infuriated shouts.

Short walk in front of him was a bridge, though no one was using it due to it being the middle of the night. He took a single step onto the bridge when something crashed right in front of him, shaking the entire bridge and kicking up dust. It took a moment for Negi to realign his feet, as soon as he did; he took his first look at what caused the impact.

It appeared to be a giant comical monkey suit, although it was carrying something in its arms.

"Konoka-san!" he cried, hoping to wake the girl, at the same time bringing his hand into a fist and subtly chanting.

"Oh, it's you. You're that mage from the West."

'_Paralysis.'_ Negi shouted.

Just as the monkey tried to run, it tripped over its own leg and Konoka was flung high into the air. Negi barely had time to catch her and place her out of harm's way. As an extra precaution, he cast the same binding spell he used against Evangeline on the giant monkey.

Within seconds of him finishing the incantation, Asuna and Setsuna showed up. Both girls went straight over to Konoka, seeing if she was alright. At it seemed, she was just knocked out.

"Thanks for the help, Negi." Asuna suddenly spoke up. The boy in question, looked back at her, and saw something he really didn't expect. Asuna was smiling, not one of the grins that promised pain nor a forced one. She was smiling sincerely, actually happy that he got her friend back.

"It was no problem, Asuna. Anything for a friend." He said, returning the smile, though it quickly turned into a puzzled frown. 'Where the hell did that come from?' he thought.

Back in the hotel, still fast asleep, Naruto was still dreaming of his precious ramen, or was until something made him sneeze in his sleep. Sitting straight up, he looked around for anyone with a feather in the immediate vicinity. When no one could be found, he shrugged and fell back to sleep.

After giving a confirmative nod to Asuna, Negi turned back to the captive monkey. Only, the monkey was no longer there, instead a puddle of water remained.

"Oh son of a-" THWACK!

"No swearing in front of girls, ya hear?" Asuna scolded, resting her harisen on her shoulder. Only after whacking Negi did she notice the harisen herself. Curiosity edging her on, she examined the large paper fan. Unlike the majority of it, it featured a metal hilt with a tag hanging from the pommel. "Where did this thing come from?" She questioned. "You guys can see it, right?"

"You hit me with it, so I can see it pretty clearly." Negi joked.

"Hey, red! I've got an idea." Chamo shouted, finally opening his mouth. "Try saying, 'Abeat'." Not even questioning the ermine, Asuna did so.

Upon doing it, the harisen glowed brightly and quickly shrunk down into the shape of a card. The glow faded, and Asuna was holding her pactio card.

"Hah, I was right, like I always am." Chamo dismissed.

"Really, what about the time when you got stuck in that rabbit trap?" Negi teased. The ermine froze mid-stride.

"You said you wouldn't bring that up." Chamo hissed. Negi simply grinned in response.

"Uh, you two, can we get back to the hotel now, I'm tired." Asuna complained.

* * *

The next morning, Naruto felt like his head took a pounding during the night. And everything was much brighter than usual; it hurt just to look out the window. He tried to get up, but quickly felt like throwing up. Unusually, the feeling stopped just as he walked out the door. A small burst of chakra through his system and he was fine.

Although, the memories of yesterday's activities got him wondering if the girls were feeling the effects. Slipping on his school uniform, he made his way to the dining hall. At first, it seemed normal, a few students sprinkled around and grouped together. That was until he heard a sharp cry of 'Naruto-kun!' piercing his ears.

Not a second later, He was crash tackled to the ground by a very happy Sakurako.

"You're awake. I've been waiting for half an hour just waiting for you here." She pouted. "I even made you breakfast too."

"Wait, a minute, how did you make breakfast? Students aren't allowed in the kitchens." Naruto suddenly questioned.

Sakurako only smiled sweetly.

"Not that I'm complaining, but still…" He sighed in resignation. "Fine, let's just go."

The girl stifled a laugh and pulled him by the hand towards the table she was at, as were the others of Group 1. In front of all of them, were empty trays. Although in Naruto's tray was a couple of onigiri, Miso soup and a bit of grilled fish.

Seeing as none of the others had received their food, Naruto thought it a bit rude if he were to start eating before they did. But at the same time, he also thought that if he didn't eat, he would hurt Sakurako's feelings. Turning towards her to hopefully relay his thoughts, Naruto was rather surprised when Sakurako placed a small kiss on his lips. Even though he was confused, he smiled lightly against it.

Across the table, glaring daggers at Sakurako, Chachamaru suppressed a twitch of annoyance. On either side of her, were the twins, both of them noticed the subtle twitch. They weren't apprenticed to Kaede for nothing.

"Chacha-chan, what's wrong?" Fumika asked, her head cocked to one side.

"Yeah, you're looking a bit angry." Fuuka commented bluntly.

Chachamaru snapped out of it when she heard the twins, and quickly ducked her head to avoid anyone seeing the blush appearing on her cheeks.

When Naruto broke away from Sakurako, he was sporting a bit of a blush himself.

"… I was just wondering, if it would be right to eat, when everyone else hasn't gotten their food yet." He finally asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh, no it's alright, isn't it Misa?" Sakurako asked her friend a little too sweetly. Said girl and Madoka were both resting their jaws of their hands, which in turn was supported by their elbows on the table. While Misa already had a boyfriend, she was staring a bit longingly at Naruto for Sakurako's liking. Madoka, on the other hand, was simply staring at the wall behind them with a bored expression.

"Oh, wha? Oh yeah, sure of course." The long haired cheerleader replied, her thoughts in a daze.

"Now, come on Naruto-kun, eat up." Sakurako smiled as she grabbed hold of his arm. "You'll need the energy for group activity. Especially when seniors get to go alone, right?"

"Uh, ok." Naruto replied simply, before picking up his chopsticks and began to eat the food. He really hated it the fact that the old man made him attend senior classes. While he was listed as a senior, he didn't even remember it half the time. The class that came along to Kyoto was voluntary, so hardly anyone from his class actually came, that was why he wasn't having group activities.

"In that case, you'll be paying for lunch, right Naruto-sempai?" Fuuka quickly asked.

Swallowing his current mouthful of food, he responded with 'Only if I get to choose'.

So it was settled then, he was going to treat them to Ramen. It's been quite a while since he had the stuff. His only hope was that the ramen here would be just as good as Ichiraku's.

Another five minutes, and the others were having their breakfast as well. Naruto had almost finished his when they started.

Another few minutes, and they were piling onto into the bus. Naturally, quite a few of the girls were fighting over who got Negi for the day. Even Fuuka joined in on the bidding, although in the end it was Negi's choice. Surprisingly, he accepted the invitation from the quietest of the girls, Nodoka.

Well, not surprising if Naruto thought about it. Actually it was rather typical of Negi. The blonde figured that the teenage teacher had a bit of a crush on Asuna…then again, quite a few of the girls other than Asuna seemed to be infatuated with Negi, with Nodoka being among the more obvious, aside from Makie and Ayaka.

Well that was what Naruto thought the reason was. But as usual, he was way off.

Negi wasn't thinking with his body this time, actually he was thinking about the safety of the students. And seeing as though group five was the most likely to be attacked by that monkey person, the choice was obvious. Asuna and Setsuna being there were lucky perks.

Clambering onto the bus himself, Negi surveyed the people on board. First of all, his entire class managed to fit onto the bus, as well as a few extras. Naruto was there, sitting next to his girlfriend, Sakurako. Group five was the back, along with Shizuna-sensei. The blonde ninja actually looked a bit uncomfortable, but he restricted himself to simply shuffling. Both their eyes met for a moment, Negi sent him a gaze that said 'I need to talk to you'. Naruto discreetly nodded. As the red-head made his way past him, he slipped Naruto a note.

The note was simple. It basically instructed him to meet with him during the men's bath time.

* * *

"Oh, wow. There really are deer here!" Negi exclaimed.

Even though he was acting like a little kid at the moment, he couldn't help it. Something just clicked inside his head, and suddenly he felt the urge to feed them.

With a bag of feed in one hand, he approached carefully as to not startle it. When the doe began to eat out of his hand, he scratched behind its ears to further soothe it. When the deer finished eating, it licked Negi's now empty palm, expecting some more to appear. Graciously, he provided it.

Back with the rest of group five, Nodoka looked on with a dreamy stare. Just when she thought nothing could go wrong… Haruna and Yue dragged her into a quiet conversation, praising her for her courage to ask Negi. After the congratulations were over, Haruna, for all intents and purposes, commanded Nodoka to confess to Negi before the end of the day. The poor bookworm couldn't even attempt to hide the blush that rushed to her face.

Not even paying attention to her friend's distress, Haruna started rambling on about how the studies showed that confessions during school trips had a success rate of over eighty-seven percent. To further sink in the point, Haruna stated that if her confession was successful, then Nodoka would be able to have a date with Negi all by herself during the next day.

Walking ahead of the Library Trio, Negi, Asuna and Setsuna were contemplating the current situation.

"That monkey-person isn't going to show herself today is she?" Negi asked, sounding a bit disappointed, he felt like letting some steam out.

"We should be fine for today, Negi-sensei. The shikigami I've sent along with the other groups will notify me if anything happens." Setsuna assured. "You two enjoy yourselves; I'll be protecting Konoka Ojou-sama from the shadows."

Asuna seemed to have a slight problem with that.

"'Protect her from the shadows'? Can't you just as easily protect her from her side?" She suggested.

Setsuna then began to stutter a bit, claiming that someone of her status shouldn't be seen beside Konoka. Just as she was about to drive the point home, Konoka and two of the library trio appeared.

The brunet quickly began offering her old friend some dango, which to her disappointment, refused quite profusely and ran away. The two library workers dragged Asuna off before she could even protest. Leaving just Negi and Nodoka together…alone. Not really understanding the situation, Negi simply offered Nodoka to walk with him.

So began, Nodoka's many attempts to tell Negi how she felt.

* * *

Naruto was a little insecure when it came to his girlfriend, Sakurako. The girl practically dragged him away from the group as soon as they were off the bus, leaving her friends and the rest of the group behind. He could swear that he saw a forlorn look in Chachamaru's eyes for a fleeting moment.

The next moment they were in an open park. Without much warning, Sakurako pushed Naruto down onto a nearby bench and quickly straddled him. Naruto didn't even get to recover from what just happened before Sakurako had pressed her lips onto his.

Not that Naruto didn't like what was happening; he just wished that the girl would give him some kind of warning or something. When the girl finally pulled away from him to catch her breath, the first thing she did was let out a girlish giggle that sounded almost heavenly to Naruto.

"Tee hee, Naruto-kun, you're so cute when you're surprised." She teased.

'That's what this is about? Judging whether or not I'm cute?' Naruto thought, even as his eye twitched.

"Hey, Naruto-kun, let's go to Kasuga-taisha!" she suddenly called.

Kasuga-taisha or Kasuga Shrine is one of the many Buddhist shines among Nara. The shrine is most notable for the bronze lanterns inside the shrine, as well as the stone lanterns that line the path towards it. Amongst those paths, quite a few deer tend to run around, it being rather close to the Nara Deer Park.

Walking along, Naruto couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of the area surrounding him. It was quite different from the surreal beauty of Konoha, where almost everything seemed huge, but where he was now, seemed to prefer the more disciplined, smaller and delicate beauty.

Inside the shrine was very similar to the one he visited the previous day, although now Sakurako yet again begged him to get another fortune.

The difference this time was that he received on that read 'Dai-kichi Machiboto Renai'.

"Ooh, that's a good one Naruto-kun, wanna tie it to the tree or keep it for good luck?" Sakurako practically bounced up and down.

"I think I'll keep it, might come in handy."

* * *

The rest of the day passed relatively quickly for Naruto…Although the same couldn't be said for Negi. While he was alone with Nodoka, she slipped out her confession, and that really made Negi pause. He knows how to handle a confession; he'd been getting them since he was thirteen. But something made him pause about Nodoka's confession; he didn't know what it was. How could he? He never really talked to the shy girl, so there was no way of knowing what it was about her that made him pause.

So here he was, pacing around in the lobby, his hand on his chin. Every once in a while, he stopped and hit his head against the wall, trying to get his brain working again. He had too much to worry about already, and now he had to deal with a student's feelings towards him. On the plus side however, all the recent developments haven't affected any other students outside of group five. Maybe, just maybe he would be able to pull this off, just as long as nothing else arose.

Negi was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't know that two or more of his admirers were just around the corner, listening intently on him figuring out a solution. With each time they heard a bang against the wall, they grew more worried. Sharing a glance with each other, they broke their cover and decided to ask whether or not he was alright.

"Negi-sensei, is something wrong?" Ayaka asked, placing slender hand on his shoulder. "We heard you thinking out loud, and from the sounds of things, something is troubling you."

"Ahh, Ayaka-san, Makie-san…Ahh, sorry for worrying you, I was just thinking of a suitable area for tomorrow." He quickly supplied. Lying can be a useful skill for when one has fan girls. "Man, can one confession really spin so out of focus?" he muttered to himself when he thought that the girls weren't listening.

"Confession!" the girls screamed, including the ones behind the wall.

As soon as Negi realised his slip of the tongue, he bolted out of there. As luck would have it, he came across Naruto on his way out. He grabbed the blonde by the collar and dragged him away, even with Naruto struggling.

"Stop struggling, idiot. I gotta talk to you later, at six in the baths." Negi, finishing his reminder, released the blonde. Naruto pulled himself to stand and walked back to his room, muttering something similar to 'freakin' mages'.

Back in the lobby, Ayaka was fuming at the possibility that someone had taken a chance and confessed to her Negi.

"This situation must be rectified at once!" she cried. "There is only one person who can figure this out."

Moments later, Kazumi Asakura was listening to the testimonies of the class rep, pink-haired Makie and Basketball player Yuuna.

"So, during the activities at Nara Park today..." she began, trailing off as she listened to Ayaka speak and writing down notes. "So someone confessed to Negi-sensei… Hey hold on that's not obscene at all!"

"Yes it is! It's way beyond what's acceptable!" Ayaka snapped back. "At any rate, find out who is responsible! We're counting on you Asakura!"

"Hai hai." She waved off. "I doubt that this will lead to a big story. But whatever, gotta please the population, I guess."

'So a confession to Negi-sensei…could only be one person.' Kazumi thought with a scary smile, as she walked towards group five's room.

"Ah, Honya, you're all by yourself, perfect." The reporter greeted as she pushed the door open. Sitting down in front of the shy girl, Kazumi asked her question, her audio recorder hovering close by. "So Honya, is it true you slept with Negi-sensei?"

Nodoka's reply was instantaneous. She spat the juice she was drinking straight out. Afterwards she was blushing bright red. Once she could speak again, she began to feverishly deny what Kazumi said.

Kazumi couldn't hold back a bark of laughter. "I'm kidding Honya-chan. Heard you confessed, how'd it go?"

"W-well, I was able to tell him how I feel. That's all." Nodoka managed to squeak out. "I-I don't really need to hear his response, I'm happy that I just told him."

"Ahh, Honya-chan, you're not in primary school anymore." Kazumi teased, giving her a short tussle of Nodoka's hair. "It doesn't really matter. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I'm supporting you, so give it your best, ok." She said as she left the room.

Like any good teenage girl, Kazumi was a sucker for sappy romance, so she would make sure that no one else got their hands on the material she just gathered from Nodoka. Kazumi did the honourable thing, and deleted the recording; after all, it would cause a ruckus if anyone got their hands on it. 'Sorry Class Rep.' she mentally apologised.

Just as she was forgetting all about the tape, something related to that topic appeared in her field of vision. Negi-sensei. He didn't notice her, mostly due to him thinking heavily. At his subdued pace, he made very slow progress out the main entrance.

'Hmm, maybe an interview with the man himself will get Ayaka of my back.' Kazumi schemed. 'Eh, can't hurt to try.'

Just as she started to move, a van that seemed like it was in a real hurry came screeching around the corner. Negi didn't even seem to notice that the van was speeding towards him, even against the sound of the tires screeching as the driver slammed on the brakes. It didn't do any good though, even with the brakes applied, the van was still doing sixty kilometres an hour.

Kazumi didn't want to watch, but she couldn't pull her gaze away from the scene. When the van was barely four feet away from Negi, he simply made a swiping motion with his right hand.

The next moment, the van had flipped up, over Negi and landed right-side up on the other side. The driver, who was sure he'd just killed someone, was very sick, and very confused. Especially when the kid he was sure he just ran over walked right past the window, not even phased or showing any signs of nearly being run over.

Kazumi, however, was just as confused as the driver.

'W-what the hell just happened?' she asked herself, now hiding as best she could. 'Was that some kind of martial art?'

"Ha-ha, Aniki, even when you're out of it, you still got what it takes." Chamo exclaimed.

'Did that ermine just talk?' Kazumi thought she was hearing things. Taking a peek around the corner, she had just enough time to see Negi step on his staff and fly away; leaving her awestruck and twitching with possibilities she could do with this info.

Shaking off the initial shock, Kazumi quickly pulled out her camera and snapped off a few shots before Negi became a speck in the distance.

'This is it!' She screamed in her head. 'My ultra-super-huge Scoop!'

* * *

Negi relaxed in the soothing open air bath. Truly there was nothing quite like bathing in japan. 'Seriously, the other baths I've seen here were unique so why not this one?' he contemplated.

"Where the hell is Naruto? He was supposed to be here five minutes ago." Chamo questioned openly.

As if hearing the ermine question his whereabouts, the door to the men's change room opened and let a towel-clad Naruto walk through. He greeted Negi with a short 'Yo', before lowering himself into the warm water.

"You freaking blonde idiot! Why are you so late!" Chamo screamed at the top of his lungs, which as quite loud as Negi had to cover his ears.

"Well, I was lost on the road of life…" Naruto answered with a nervous chuckle.

"Liar," Negi muttered. "We've wasted enough time, so here's the short version; we need your help in defending Konoka Konoe." He started. "The Kansai Magic Association has targeted her for kidnap. We don't really know what this will accomplish, but we're not going to let it happen. Setsuna Sakurazaki has joined us in protecting Konoka, as has Asuna. As it is, they have attempted on three occasions to disrupt our activities. The first being on the train on the way here-"

"Hold it, if you're talking about the frogs. That was me." Naruto admitted. "Just thought I'd have a little fun is all." He explained before they further questioned him.

"Ok. Well, so then the first disruption was the pitfall and the spiked water. I'm assuming that wasn't you, since you fell for that trap." Naruto shook his head. "The most recent was last night. At roughly half-past seven, someone managed to infiltrate the hotel and make off with Konoka. Luckily, I was able to intercept and recover her. Had I reacted slower, Konoka would have almost been lost to us.

"We need you to assist us in this task. Tomorrow, during free activities, I along with Asuna will be heading to the Kansai Magic Association headquarters to deliver a letter. As to its contents I wouldn't know, but the dean has trusted me with this task. I want you and Setsuna to watch over Konoka and the rest of the class during that time. I will keep in contact with Setsuna with Shikigami, just in case the enemy shows themselves. That's all."

"Very well then, I'll take my leave. Enjoy the rest of your bath Negi." Naruto said as he stood up and placed his hand in the sign that Negi had become rather familiar with.

One blink and Naruto was gone from sight, only leaving a slight drop of water to be heard.

* * *

Ten Minutes Earlier

Kazumi was almost ready to confront Negi-sensei and convince him to show her his 'magic'. She planned to disguise herself as Shizuna-sensei and smother the teen with her bosom, hopefully lulling the man into doing whatever she wanted.

Just as she was placing the wig and fake glasses on, a hand clamped itself over her mouth, muffling her sudden scream. The other hand seized both arms and kept them still, effectively making sure she couldn't make a move and making her drop the towel around her at the same time. Quickly and quietly, the person moved them into the shadows to keep them hidden from sight.

As she was pulled into the darkness, Kazumi felt her back pushing against something relatively flat, tough and warm. Making a mental image from the bumps, Kazumi was sure that it was a man's bare torso. As soon as she realised that, she began to whimper and struggle.

"Be quiet and still, I'm not here to hurt you." Her captor whispered in a voice that was vaguely familiar to her. "You know about Negi's secret, you are not to mention anything to anyone regarding this secret."

Kazumi felt her eyes widen, this was about Negi-sensei's secret.

"If you keep this to yourself, you will be rewarded. Believe me; it will be well worth the wait and co-operation. Can I count on you?" He asked. Kazumi did all she could, although she had one condition.

She spoke out her wishes, although muffled by the person's hand.

"Very well, name the condition." He requested as he removed his hand, but still kept his iron grip on Kazumi's arms.

Keeping her voice at the same volume as her captor's, she complied.

"Tell me, who are you? I promise not to tell anyone, you have my word." She whispered.

"Since I trusted you with Negi's secret, so shall I trust you with mine." He began. "I am Naruto Uzumaki, Shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves."

"Naruto? You're a Shinobi?" Kazumi asked astounded as she broke from his grasp. As she separated from him, she suddenly felt too cold.

"It may sound a little hard to believe, but I assure you it is true, Kazumi-chan." He spoke with a little bit of humour in his voice.

"Then prove it to me." She demanded, trying to cover up the fact that she was blushing at the 'chan' suffix he attached to her name.

"Meet me tomorrow during the free activities." Naruto replied. "I'll show you. Ja ne Kazumi-chan."

* * *

AN: Phew, chapter 14 done.

Took me quite a while, I take back what I said about hopefully writing ten thousand words a chapter. I'll stick to five thousand.

Yes I know that Negi ended the fight rather quickly. But you gotta remember, in the manga/anime he actually had quite a bit of time to cast a spell, I just decided to capitalise on the situation.

A bit of Naruto's 'Date' with Sakurako, and a slightly kinky ending… you guys did know that it was Naruto before he announced it, right?

Just saying, coz there would be no way I'd be writing a rape scene, someone may be able to coax a lemon from me, but that will come much, much later, and certainly not in this time frame.

As usual, ask if you didn't understand anything or if I missed something.

And NO saying that Naruto is too trustworthy of random people, that is actually completely in character for him. Still a bit peeved from people who can't see that.

Till Next Time, Krimzon-8 out!


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own characters related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 15: The Second Night

"Talking"

'Thinking'

'_Jutsu or spells'_

AN: Sorry for being quite late, lack of enthusiasm and writer's block mostly to blame. Plus several new good games came out, so my attention as rather divided.

* * *

While Negi and Naruto were talking, Chamo decided to go for a little peek in the girl's change room. As luck would have it, he encountered a slightly jumpy Kazumi Asakura, who was in the middle of putting her clothes back on.

'Heh, Ane-san seems to have forgotten that it is still 'Sensei Time' Chamo cheekily thought, not know that he actually voiced his thoughts. And in the confines of the change room, his voice echoed around the room. This in turn, led Asakura to spot him.

"Hey wait a minute; you're Negi-sensei's talking pet. Why the hell are you in here?" She asked, crouching near him. Hearing her ask, Chamo froze stiff.

"Y-you know about Aniki?" the ermine nervously asked.

"Yeah, found out about it this afternoon, when he pulled the stunt with the van." Chamo began to visibly shake in fear. "Got photographic evidence too, See?" Kazumi pulled out an already developed photo of Negi flying.

Chamo almost snatched the photo out of her hands, ready to tear it to pieces. Only for her to pull it back out of his reach.

"Don't worry fur ball, I won't tell anyone, Naruto-kun assured me that if I don't tell, you guys will give me something good." She quickly explained, calming the ermine. "I don't know what I'll get, but he said that it'd be worth the co-operation."

"That so, Ane-san?" Chamo said, the gears starting to turn in his head. "Considering you got info on Aniki… I'm willing to bet that you can probably get info and practically anyone, huh?"

"Yeah, well, they don't call me 'The Mahora Paparazzi' for nothing." Kazumi confidently replied, a bit flushed from the unexpected praise.

"Ane-san, I think we can work out a deal."

* * *

"Negi, what are we going to do for tonight?" Asuna asked as Negi walked out of the baths. "Setsuna and I were thinking about going on patrol tonight, so you can have a good night's sleep."

"Don't worry about it; I'll be going on patrol…" He paused, suddenly reconsidering something. "And we got Naruto-san watching the students, so I reckon that we'll be fine."

"You sure we can trust Naruto-san, Negi-sensei?" Setsuna cautiously asked.

"I'm sure, he can be a bit of an idiot sometimes, but if anything, he's reliable." Just as he finished, a small burst of smoke appeared behind Negi. When it quickly cleared, there was a Kunai to the teenager's neck. In an instant, Setsuna had her blade half drawn.

"I'm sorry what did you say, Negi-sensei?" Naruto asked sarcastically in a creepily nice tone.

"I said you can be an idiot sometimes." The kunai withdrew and disappeared from sight.

"Eh, I can accept that." Naruto playfully stated along with a shrug.

It was then that he just noticed Setsuna's half drawn sword and twitching eyebrow.

"What? A everyone's got a few quirks." He said innocently.

Eyeing the Shinobi, the she sheathed her blade and tied the cloth up.

"Hey, Naruto-kun, Negi-sensei." A new voice called them.

Turning, they came face to face with Kazumi, who had Chamo riding on her shoulder, who quickly chirped, 'Aniki, here you are!'

Almost instantly, everyone except Naruto got on their guard, only for Chamo to wave them off.

"Don't worry Aniki, she already knows and has vowed to not tell." Nobody saw the proud smirk that Naruto quickly flashed.

"…what?" Setsuna, Asuna and Negi all asked at once.

"That's right; I'll be acting as your agent in order to protect your secret. Look forward to working with you sensei." Kazumi simply stated, handing him a bundle of photos.

Negi quickly gave a sigh of relief, before checking what the photos contained. He did a quick scan of them pocketed the photos with a nod of satisfaction. Turning to talk to his partner and the swords woman about the patrol schedule, he left Asakura with Naruto.

Naruto smiled at Asakura, just before she gripped his shoulders and pulled herself onto her tiptoes to whisper into his ear.

"Don't forget, Naruto-kun, you still have to show me that you're a Ninja."

"No problem Kazumi-chan. I'll show you first thing in the morning." He whispered back.

"I'll be waiting." Just for fun, she pulled back a little and planted a quick peck on his scarred cheek. "If you're telling the truth, you might get something better than that." She released her grasp and winked seductively at him, making a bit of blood rush to Naruto's face as he thought of what she meant.

"Ah, Naruto-Niisan." Ayaka's voice entered his ears. "What are you and Asakura-san doing?" She quickly asked, eyes darting between the two.

"Oh nothing much Iincho, just improving our relationship is all." Kazumi supplied innocently. Naruto nervously shrugged, clearly stating that he was not entirely comfortable.

"…oh, ok." The blonde girl responded, sounding a bit more subdued than usual. Before she could ask anything else, Nitta-sensei approached the group.

"Ok girls, hurry up and get back to your rooms, it's almost the juniors' bedtime." He told the girls firmly. "As for you Naruto, would you mind telling the other senior students that they get another hour before lights out?"

"No problem Nitta-sensei." Naruto replied with a mock salute, a sight which made Ayaka giggle. Then a sharp glare from the elder teacher sent her away.

As she approached her room, Ayaka could hear group one sharing scary stories, while just as Yuuna opened her door, a pillow flew straight into her face, thus starting a rather large pillow fight. Passing group five's room, she could hear the library girls and Konoka gossiping about something. Sadly, she couldn't make out the details.

Just entering her own sleeping area, she could finally remembered just how loud 3-A could get.

Just as she was whispering a curse to herself, Nitta-sensei and two other teachers barged into the hallway and started shouting.

"I thought it was too quiet last night. Now I know why!" He scolded; making sure his voice reached every corner of the hallway. "I know that Negi has been soft on you girls, but as long as I am the Director of Academy External Activities, you shall not have your way! For the rest of the night, you are forbidden to leave your rooms! If I find any of you outside, you'll find yourself sitting in the lobby until morning!"

Quite a few of the girls protested, but were quickly shot down as Nitta left the room. Shizuna quietly whispered an apology to the class before leaving as well.

After the teacher's departure, the girls found themselves pouting and revealing what they planned to do that night. Yuuna and the twins agreed that they were looking forward to pillow fight with Negi. The cheerleaders wanted to talk dirty with Negi, well two of them did. And Makie wanted to sleep on the same futon as him.

Ayaka, being the noble class representative, simply told them to go back to their rooms. However they were confronted by the class reporter.

"It would be a waste if the night ended like this right?" she questioned, an insidious smirk on her face. "How about us girls play a little game tonight?"

As expected, Ayaka tried to shoot it down, but the majority of the girls had already agreed to the idea, with a few exceptions. Taking this as her cue to explain said 'game', Kazumi gave a small chuckle.

"The game's called, 'War of the Lips'…Or to put it basically, to get a love-love kiss with Negi-sensei…tonight."

Once again, the girls went into full blown agreement on the idea. Though, Kazumi had to calm them down a bit, in case Nitta came back.

"The rules of the game are rather simple. Each group selects two representatives. There will be a random draw for a 'wildcard' who gets to play on their own for a different objective. All they have to do is not get caught by 'Demon Nitta', everyone else and steal a kiss from Negi-sensei. Here's the twist, teams can sabotage each other, but their only weapons are pillows. If you win, you'll get a great prize to commemorate the occasion. Although, if you are caught by Nitta, you cannot speak a word about the game and sit in the lobby until morning, no matter what."

Almost immediately, all the girls started to consider whether or not to go through with it. Quite a few were wondering what the prize was, but all they got from Asakura was 'It's a secret, but you'll definitely like it.'

Almost zombie-like, Ayaka suddenly stumbled over to Kazumi, her eyes hidden by her bangs.

"What's up class rep? We can't do it after all?" Kazumi asked nervously, even flinching when Ayaka actually laid her hands on her shoulders.

"Asakura-san, as class representative, you have my permission to go through with this." Ayaka declared, her eyes glowing red underneath her bangs. Kazumi could only mutter a small 'thanks', before turning back to the class.

"All right, each group should tell me their participants before half past! And if you want to do try the wildcard, write your name on a ticket and hand it to me." Kazumi announced.

A moment later, and the girls were selecting their participants. Some were thinking about the wildcard, but most backed out. Sakurako, for one, chose to be a spectator, leaving her position to be taken by Fuuka, who dragged her sister along for the ride.

In the end, only three people put their name up for the wildcard. Those three were, Chao Lingshen, Konoka Konoe and Chachamaru Karakuri.

* * *

After telling the other seniors that they had another hour, Naruto continued to walk aimlessly around the hotel. He wandered quite far from the area which 3-A slept, knowing that they would be rather loud. He really didn't need that at the moment.

Unknowingly, he found himself strolling outside in the relative darkness. The night wasn't entirely cold in Japan; that much he could tell from his first night in Mahora. The nights back in Konoha were freezing in comparison, quite a contradiction to the name 'Land of Fire'.

Looking at the starry sky, he felt uneasiness wash over him. The feeling only grew when the bluish light from the moon spread over him like a thin film.

Hearing a sharp 'snap' echo from behind him, Naruto quickly spun to investigate, his icy blue eyes scanning the darkness for any sign of an enemy. For a minute, there was no sound except the rustling of the trees in the wind. Cursing his paranoia, the Jinchuuriki took a step forward.

The sound of his feet hitting the ground was different than it was a few minutes ago. Curiosity getting the better of him, Naruto made a cursory glance at his feet.

He was standing in the middle of a puddle that wasn't there before. A fleeting moment after the realisation hit him, a spike of stone burst forth from the puddle at frightening speeds. Reflexes taking over, Naruto quickly leapt backwards, narrowly avoiding being impaled.

Sliding to a halt, he snapped his eyes forward, only to be greeted by another rushing to meet him.

Naruto sprung to the right, the jagged stone missing him by millimetres. The ground began to shake, another spike had already begun to rise, precisely where he was going to land. Before he even knew what he was doing, Naruto snapped out his hidden kunai and threw it right at the tip of the spike.

Surprisingly, the blade buried itself into the rock, all the way to the hilt. As it came towards him, Naruto placed his palm over the pommel and pushed high into the air.

Hearing the ground crack once more, Naruto couldn't help but fret. He was in mid-air, with no way to dodge the next attack.

What actually came out of the ground caught him completely off guard. It was a white-haired boy clad in blue, no older than himself, with his fist cocked behind him. Yet there was something strange about him. First of all was the fact that his lips were moving while he proceeded towards the ninja. Naruto couldn't make out any words, but they were definitely being said.

For the first time in a long while, Naruto actually hoped that gravity would increase.

Without warning, the boy's fist was suddenly surrounded by circles of glowing runes, signifying a Magic enhanced punch.

'One punch could put me out of commission for a while; maybe more…gotta avoid it and counterattack.' Naruto's mind raced through the available options.

When the boy came within arm's reach, Naruto's arm snapped out and grabbed the boy's wrist with his left hand. Using the other boy as a pivot, Naruto angled himself away from the punch, following up with his own Chakra enhanced punch to the stomach. He felt the blow connect, but it didn't seem to affect the boy. Glancing at his fist, he was dumbfounded.

Naruto's fist stopped roughly an inch from the boy's flesh; even pumping his chakra through it didn't seem to help. Confused, Naruto pulled his fist back and punched, once, twice, three times, and still his fist couldn't connect.

Panicking slightly, he figured that there was only one thing left to do. Flee.

Instead of pursuing his assault, the blonde simply grabbed the boy's collar and held fast. He'd let gravity do the rest.

That would have been the plan…if the boy didn't slow the decent somehow. Naruto cursed and resorted to plan B. He swiftly pulled out a smoke pellet and smashed it against the boy's invisible barrier.

The smoke now obscuring their view, Naruto created a single shadow clone and ran silently of the path, heading back to the hotel.

He barely made it before the clone's memories hit him like cold water in the back of his head. It had been impaled by one of the spikes. As soon as he was on the other side of the automatic doors, he collapsed against a nearby bench, drawing heavy breaths.

It was just like his first mission out of Konoha all over again. He was out of his element, he had no idea what the enemy was like and he didn't even know if he was going to be of any help.

Laying his head back on the seat, he closed his eyes. And before he knew it, he was asleep.

* * *

Negi was leaning against the wall of his room, simply contemplating the situations and scenarios that might happen. He'd been doing this for roughly half an hour, ever since he felt a small chill run down his spine. At hearing his door open, he saw Asuna and Setsuna walk in.

"Ok, we're back from patrol Negi." Asuna reported, letting Setsuna take over.

"Nothing in particular worth noting except for a little extra background magic, as a precaution, I've strengthened the barrier." She stated casually. "It also seems that Chamo has cast some kind of spell…wonder what he's up to."

"I'm taking the next one." Negi said, picking himself up and stretching, some of his joints popping as he loosened them. "Thanks for the info; I'll keep an eye out for anything suspicious."

Just as he was about to leave, Setsuna handed him a pack of what seemed to be bits of paper cut into the vague shape of a man.

"Substitution stencils." She told him. "Just write your name on them and they will take your form, and do what you tell them." Just as she finished explaining them, the door flung open, forcing the two girls to quickly hide behind the wall.

"Negi-sensei, it's almost time for you to go to bed." Shizuna said from the doorway.

"Shizuna-sensei?" Negi blinked, 'what the hell is she doing here?'

"Uh, I'm not all that tired though." He lied through his teeth; he was pretty tempted by sleep at the moment.

"Nonsense, you're much younger than the rest of us. So we're willing to overlook the fact that you're part of the staff, just so you can get some sleep." Shizuna countered, her smile never faltering.

Negi hung his head in mild shame; she did have a good point. Admitting defeat, he sighed and nodded weakly. As soon as he did that though, Shizuna bolted off down the hall, leaving Negi rather confused as to what just happened. When she final disappeared around the corner, Negi turned back to his guests and suggested that they take a bath and go to bed.

After they left, he tried testing out the stencils that he was given. He'd be the first to admit that he was rather flimsy when it came to writing with a brush, but that usually didn't stop him from trying.

It took him three tries to get his name right in Kanji. The two failures, he chucked in the bin. Giving the orders to his 'clone', Negi grabbed his staff and leapt out from the window. At soonest, he'd be back in roughly fifteen minutes.

* * *

Chachamaru tensed as she walked along the dark halls, a pillow clutched in her hand. It was still hard to believe that she got picked for the wildcard. The reason she put her name into the draw, was that she was curious to the objective which the chosen person would have to do. To say that Hakase was confused about Chachamaru's behaviour was an understatement. Not only was she confused, she was entirely curious, even going so far as to schedule a routine check-up for her creation.

For the first time in her short life, Chachamaru was genuinely happy to fulfil the order placed upon her. The objective was to take a kiss from a senior student… any one of them. Although, there was an extra detail that Asakura almost forgot to mention. It had to be a deep kiss, one in which the tongue was to be used. She was completely embarrassed when that was mentioned.

At the moment however, she was a bit hesitant about finding her target. After all, the game was being shown on television around 3-A's rooms. The cameras were set up at every major corner, hallway and staircase. And it also had to do with the fact that a girl in her group was currently involved with him. Chachamaru didn't want to create a rift between herself and her new friends. For now, she'd focus on finding Naruto.

* * *

Meanwhile, Teams three and four had already spotted each other and fought, Ayaka bested both Yuna and Makie; Chisame on the other hand, simply sat out. When Ku Fei and Kaede joined the battle, Chisame left and got caught by Nitta, in doing so she had alerted the other girls to his presence. Kaede and Ku Fei quickly got away, knocking Yuna over in the process. Ayaka and Makie barely made it out before being spotted. To compensate, Ayaka and Makie joined forces to prevent the two Baka Rangers from getting to Negi.

Outside the building, Nodoka and Yue were sneaking around the foundations of the building in order to not get caught by Nitta. It was a long detour, but it was safer. Yue had apparently planned for this and had unlocked the fire escape which they would use to get back inside, right next to Negi's room. Nodoka was about to enter, but Fuuka and Fumika dropped in from the attic, strangely enough, wearing Ninja attire.

In a strange flourish, they proclaimed 'Narutaki Ninjutsu Style: Split Body Technique!' Yue dryly commented that they didn't split at all. Fuuka almost threw her pillow, but was intercepted by Yue's own. After exhausting her ammunition, Yue brought out her secret weapons, two hard-back books, one labelled 'Theory of Macro Evolution' and the other 'History of Capitalism'. The very look of Yue holding the books was enough to send the twins inter very visible shakes of fear.

After a short skirmish, Group two showed up and joined in. Yue barely had enough time to shove Nodoka into the room, sacrificing herself for her comrade.

* * *

Outside the hotel, Negi was doing his thing; which is to say, walking around and trying to look awesome. Although he did spot a broken bench, though that was all he could make of it. And it was just like Setsuna reported; there was a slight increase in the back ground magic. But other than that, nothing was suspicious.

He paused at a bridge and looked over towards the hotel. 'Better get back now, besides, gotta face it sooner or later, better if it was sooner.' He thought, choosing to bite the bullet. 'Girls, will never understand them. Well as they always say, ignorance is bliss.'

* * *

Meanwhile, three other Negi's were confessing to three different girls… at the same time… in three different places.

One doppelganger had Yue pinned on the futon. Another had confronted Fumika, while the final one had approached Makie.

Each one of the girls had a different reaction. Makie so flustered that she could barely look at her teacher. Fuuka and Fumika were fighting for the rights to kiss Negi, and Yue was in a rather compromising position, which almost seemed like borderline sexual abuse. Luckily for her though, nobody could see.

Yue was only a few seconds away from having her lips violated by her teacher, when she got a glance at the TV. Featured around it, were two other Negi's; both of them preparing to kiss Makie and the Narutaki twins.

With a sudden burst of rage, Yue was able to push the now obviously fake Negi off of her. Immediately she began her impromptu interrogation, only for 'Negi's' arms to suddenly extend and latch onto the back of her head.

Nodoka at the meantime, who was placed in Negi's futon after being found unconscious, chose a rather bad time to wake up. As soon as she was upright, the Negi doppelganger was upon her, going for the weaker target. Luckily, Yue intercepted by firmly hitting him in the head with her book.

Barely seconds after 'Negi' hit the floor; he exploded into a cloud of smoke, only leaving the used paper tag in its place. Needless to say, both the library girls were shocked and confused greatly.

Elsewhere, the other Negi's had sensed that their brethren had fallen and ran away from the girls who were eager to receive their first kiss. Predictably, said girls quickly followed after their respective Negi's.

The ensuing chaos came to a head in the lobby, where both clones had met up, coincidentally leading the girls to see both of them. Weirdly, no one seemed to notice Naruto sleeping on one of the benches, not even the girls who were sitting there as punishment. And neither did they notice Chachamaru stalk in, disable the cameras, steal a quick kiss from the sleeping blonde and sneak away quietly.

Chachamaru did indeed know that there wouldn't be any proof of the deed, and she wanted it to stay like that. The only way for one to confirm it would be to raid her memory banks, which would be seen as a breach of privacy in many common circles, so she was pretty confident that no one would find out. Sure she would forfeit the prize, but the journey was more enjoyable than the destination in this case.

Back amongst the action, both Negi's were soon caught and promptly burst into smoke, leaving the ones who kissed them bordering on unconsciousness. Yue and Nodoka barely made it in time to see them explode. The gathered smoke proved to be a good distraction when Nitta walked in unannounced, the exact same time that the real Negi waltzed through the main entrance.

With the sudden brightness blinding Negi, Yue shoved Nodoka into a position right in front of Negi. Still half asleep however, Nodoka wasn't in the right frame of mind to complain, more so when Negi suddenly flew into sight, knocking her to the ground and connecting their lips. In the strange tangle, one of Negi's hands landed on her breast and reflexively gave a slight squeeze. If Nodoka's face wasn't red, it sure as hell was now.

Yue, being the only one in the immediate vicinity who could see relatively clearly in the smoke, had seen Negi enter and intentionally tripped him so that he fell onto Nodoka. Not exactly one of her finest moments, but the mission was complete and Nodoka would get her prize.

And not a moment too soon, because Nitta walked in on them mid-smooch and pulled the teenagers to their feet. Shaking his head in disgust, Nitta scolded Negi on how he shouldn't let his hormones get the better of him.

So from that night's disaster, only four people involved in the game avoided 'death by sitting in the lobby until morning'. Those being Ayaka, Kaede, Ku Fei and Chachamaru. Kazumi didn't get away due to Nitta's hearing picking up her mildly greedy laughs from down the hall.

When it was clearly a few hours past the game's finish, Naruto finally awoke, only to see nine people sitting painfully in the lobby. One question was let out after he fully awoke, one that nobody bothered to answer.

"What in the hell happened here?"

* * *

AN: ok, once again, Gomen ne. Which I think, roughly means 'I am sorry.'

Just didn't have the will to write all that much recently. Been watching some anime that my friends lent me, and playing games that recently came out, Fable 3 and Vanquish mostly.

It seems that people still don't understand what I have done with the Jutsu/Spell things. Consider the following scenario, Negi vs Naruto in a 'clone battle'

Naruto's shadow clones would be able to be created faster, but at the cost of their structural integrity. Negi's clones would be opposite, It'd take him a **significantly longer time** to create one clone, but that clone would be capable of taking mulitple solid hits without dispersing. End result: A draw, Negi's single stronger clone would be the equal to the amount of Naruto's shadow clones that he could create during the same length of time.

I really don't know how many of you are actually still reading this far into the story, if you are, then you must really like it… and for that I'm grateful, mostly because of the reviews I've been getting recently aren't doing much for my spirit. I'm not asking you to review or anything, I'm not one to make demands.

Well, nothing more to write, unless you got questions, if so I'll be happy to answer them.

See ya next time. Krimzon-8 out.


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Oh man, sorry for being almost a year since the last chapter. No matter what I did, I couldn't concentrate. Hopefully you'll forgive me and read on! Enjoy

Disclaimer: I do not own characters or plots that are related to Negima or Naruto.

Mages, Shinobi and School

Chapter 16: Cinema Town

"Talking"

'Thinking'

'_Jutsu or spells'_

* * *

The next morning, practically everyone from 3-A was crowded around Nodoka, looking in awe at the prize she had won from the previous night's competition. Shad had awoken to find it sitting in her pocket, just waiting for her to claim it. Strangely enough, it was actually a card. Not unlike the one that Asuna possessed, though with quite a few changes. The first would be that Nodoka's name and picture was on it, posing as if she was reading the floating books around her.

Girls left and right were trying to sneak a peek at the 'wonderful prize' Nodoka had received. The only person she handed it to was Konoka, who was tearful by the end of her examination, wishing that she had participated. Yue, being close by, mentally confirmed that Konoka was pretty much obsessed with collectables.

Shizuna broke up the crowd, telling them that they should be getting ready for the coming day. Before Nodoka could leave, Ayaka and Makie snuck up on her.

"Well played last night, Nodoka Miyazaki. May Negi-sensei's heart go to the best woman!" Ayaka proclaimed, with Makie nodding in affirmative. A little intimidated by the class rep's proclamation, Nodoka simply nodded and hurried off, telling herself to take good care of the card, since it was her 'proof' of her first kiss.

She screeched to a halt when she almost rounded a corner, hearing Asuna complaining loudly to Negi.

"What are you going to do about these?" Asuna all but yelled, holding up one 'true' card and two fakes. "You made these, so it's your responsibility!"

"The hell it's my fault!" Negi retorted. "It was their plan in the first place!" He defended, pointing at Chamo and Kazumi. Both of which looked guilty of the blame that Negi was pinning them with.

"Yeah, but you fell into it! Did you forget that Honya is just a normal girl? We can't have her getting involved in something this complicated." Setsuna decided to add her opinion in as well.

"Asuna-san is right, Negi-sensei. Keeping your identity as a mage a secret is still essential. Even if defending the students takes top priority." The swords-woman pointed out.

"Ok, ok I get it. I'll keep Nodoka out of the loop." Negi sighed in defeat. 'Geez, what it takes to keep a woman happy. I feel sorry for Naruto-san.' He quietly thought to himself.

* * *

Naruto was waiting at the front door for Kazumi to arrive. He wanted to get his little show done and out of the road as fast as possible, simply planning to do a little acrobatics and a couple Jutsu while walking on water. If that wasn't enough, he'd simply show off his speed, since he figured that agility was a ninja's cornerstone.

Luckily enough, Kazumi showed up before Sakurako, that being a relief in itself. The last thing Naruto wanted was an over-zealous girlfriend trying to kill her fellow classmate.

Ten minutes later and Kazumi was thoroughly convinced. Although all he did was walk on water, create a couple of shadow clones and vanish with a puff of smoke, but it was enough for her. She did subtly hint that she wanted him to do something a bit perverted, but Naruto didn't catch the drift and left without another word.

The Shinobi knew of Negi's plans for the day, so he was going to try and keep at least one eye on the mage. Although when he found out that the whole of group five was going with him, he backed off. Knowing that Negi was going to be escorted by Asuna and Setsuna, Naruto decided to have a bit of faith in the mage. Although what he didn't know of, was Konoka's unyielding determination to regain Setsuna as a friend.

While he was caught up in his thoughts, Sakurako had started waving her hand in front of his face. Shaking his head a bit to clear his thoughts, he flashed a toothy grin at his girlfriend, who returned it in full force.

"So where are we going today?" Naruto asked as he began walking towards the gate. His cheerleading girlfriend simply grinned cheekily before answering.

"A little place called Cinema Town."

* * *

"A game about mages, huh…" Negi muttered, seemingly considering something as he eyed the arcade machine. "Ya know what? I'll take a shot at it."

As Negi took his place on the seat, Yue handed her starter's deck to him. He only played a single round against Konoka before he was challenged by a commoner that was roughly his age..

His students wasted no time in cheering their teacher on, but despite their best efforts, the game ended in a draw. Smiling to himself, Negi stood up and held his hand out to his opponent.

"Good game, you almost had me there with that sudden pack of dogs." He congratulated. The youth accepted the handshake and shook firmly.

"Back at ya, I didn't see that typhoon until it was too late." The youth countered, letting a chuckle escape. "You're a good player, but you still got a ways to go before you become a proper 'mage'. See ya around, Negi Springfield."

"How do you know my name?" The teacher asked, suddenly suspicious.

"It's on the screen." The teen pointed out. Negi nervously laughed at his blunder. "By the way, name's Kotaro."

In a moment, Kotaro was leaving the building in strides, not before colliding with Nodoka at the exit. During the tumble, Kotaro's cap fell off, and he was quick to recover it and place it back over his head.

"Sorry about that…here." Kotaro offered to help Nodoka up after apologising, which she hesitantly took. As soon as she was on her own two feet, he dashed out the door, hiding the redness creeping over his face. He had seen the girl's panties; and it wasn't going to be a sight he would forget easily.

Back in the Arcade, Negi and the girls watched as the boy left in a hurry. Konoka made a comment about how he 'felt' similar to Negi. Quickly, she brushed it off and went back to the game that they were playing. While the girls were playing the card game, Negi grabbed Asuna by the arm and gestured with his head that it was time to go.

They only stopped by the entrance to say a quick farewell to Setsuna before running off at full pelt for the Kansai Magic Association's headquarters, neither of them aware of the pair of curious eyes watching them.

* * *

Naruto was currently a bit uncomfortable with his current attire. Namely, him being garbed in the loose cloth of a Shinobi costume, complete with a replica Katana. If it were his choice, he would've gone for a simple walk around Kyoto. Instead, Sakurako had other ideas. She and her friends had voted for 'Cinema Town'.

Grudgingly, Naruto gave in. Girls were pretty hard to refuse when only saying 'please, please, please' over and over again.

So here he was, walking alongside group one, who were dressed up in yukatas and kimonos. The other girls tried to get Chachamaru to tie her hair up, but she denied it, saying that her hair was to exhaust heat. Naturally, Naruto was mildly confused by that statement. Occasionally, there was the odd person who asked for a photo of them, either with just Naruto by himself or with another girl.

By far, the girls thought that his best pose was when he held the still-sheathed katana on his back while making a hand seal in the other. Sakurako even complimented him by saying that he looked like a character from one of her video games.

The air seemingly changed when a man dressed as a Samurai suddenly challenged Naruto to a mock fight, which he gratefully accepted.

For five minutes, the two traded blows and parried with their swords. The duel had drawn a bit of a crowd to the scene. Spectators were cheering for their favourites and people placed minor bets.

Naruto, seeing his chance when the Samurai put too much momentum into his latest swing, quickly ducked under his guard and pointed the dull blade at the his neck.

"Got you." Naruto teased, flashing a grin. The samurai dropped his sword and admitted defeat.

The crowd cheered and the girls ran up and gave him a hug for winning. Sakurako went further and pecked him on the cheek. At first the crowd was silent, but then slowly began to clap and applaud the couple.

Upon leaving the scene, Naruto was rather embarrassed, quite the contrast to the girl clinging to his arm, who was grinning from ear to ear. A sudden flash of light caught the blonde's eye.

It was Setsuna and Konoka both posing for a picture. At first, all he saw was Setsuna's blades, one obviously being dull like his, but the sheathed one was definitely the one he'd seen her carry around with her. Her actual costume came second. It appeared to be a swordsman's outfit, though why she was wearing a male costume was beyond the Ninja.

Konoka on the other hand, was wearing something similar to what group one was wearing. After a quick conversation between the girls, they quickly asked for a copy of the picture that was just taken.

While Naruto zoned out, the girls had found their friends in the form of group three. It seemed that Zazie had chosen to wander off somewhere, leaving the other five to walk about Cinema Town. Kazumi followed Naruto's gaze and spotted the two that he was watching.

"There really is something odd about those two isn't there?" Kazumi asked, startling Naruto.

"What the… Kazumi?" He hastily questioned, eyeing the new arrivals. Then his gaze landed on Ayaka. Naruto suddenly moved in close and stared hard at her, taking in everything he could with a critical eye. Once he finished, he smiled. "Heh, Imouto-chan looks cute as a geisha." He teased.

Ayaka's reaction wasn't what he pictured in his mind, which is to say, she'd get angry and hit him. Instead, she bit her lip and turned her head away. Luckily, Ayaka's make-up hid her blush.

It was at that moment that Haruna and Yue arrived out of nowhere, both of them watching Setsuna and Konoka. Neither of them had noticed the others as of yet. The girls all shared a glance, and as one, slowly crept up to the pair, leaving both Naruto and Ayaka behind.

* * *

Negi narrowly dodged as the other boy's fist rushed towards him. However, the boy saw it coming and lashed out with his leg while still throwing the punch. The boy's fist caught Negi in the gut, knocking the wind out of him. Still on the ground, Negi tried to catch his breath, but the boy had none of it. Stepping on Negi's chest, he gave a small snort of disgust.

"Geez, I thought you western mages were supposed to be quite tough." He sneered. "But when I finally get to fight one, it turns out that he can't even fight his own battles."

Negi cursed himself to the umpteenth time for being tricked so easily. Just after he and Asuna had entered the path towards the Genhko Temple, they were trapped in an 'Infinite-Space Spell.' To make a long story short, no matter which direction they headed, they'd always wind up in the same place as before. After stopping to briefly explain the benefits of a contract to Asuna, they were ambushed by the same boy from the arcade, Kotaro.

Kotaro quickly immobilised Asuna, leaving Negi to fight for himself, which is unfortunate, since he wasn't really experienced nor trained in hand-to-hand combat. So far the best he was able to do was avoid Kotaro's attacks. Now he was stuck under his foot, trying in vain to remove him. Problem was, spells were Negi's forte not physical combat.

Then it came to him, how to defeat Kotaro, or at least slow him down. Trying not to let his lips move much, nor allow his voice to raise high enough, Negi muttered a spell through his teeth. Before finishing the last phrase, he reached up and grasped Kotaro's leg, feigning an attempt to shove him off. Kotaro simply clucked his tongue in disappointment and pushed down harder.

Without warning, Negi smiled, causing Kotaro to raise an eyebrow in confusion. It was then that the fighter noticed the ring on Negi's finger. 'A magical medium', he thought, starting to panic.

"_Black Lightening_." Negi ground out through gritted teeth.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Kotaro was suddenly convulsing painfully from the electricity running through his body. Even little discharges of lightening lanced out from his extremities.

Unable to take the punishment anymore, Kotaro blacked out, collapsing to the side of Negi in a twitching heap. The place where Negi held onto was still crackling when the mage stood back up.

Clutching his sore ribs, Negi trudged over to where Asuna was laying down in a dazed stupor. Without much of a word, he roughly grabbed Asuna's arm, pulled her upright and dashed off into the bushes. One final glance backwards saw that Kotaro was starting to stir.

When the dog hanyou came to, his leg was in pain. He cursed himself for letting that blasted mage catch him of guard. It wouldn't happen again. Already, he could feel the pain subsiding and skin heal. 'Just one of the benefits of being me,' he told himself.

Though, he couldn't smell the mage's scent, so it was likely that he wasn't close-by anymore, probably trying to avoid another fight. Just as he began to relax, he heard a twig snap behind him. In an instant, Kotaro pivoted on the spot, his fist cocked back and ready to unleash a punch. Although the split second he saw the perpetrator, he uncurled his fist and let it lay limp at his side.

It was that girl from before, the one he knocked over on his way out of the arcade. 'And saw her panties,' he remembered with a blush threatening to form. He couldn't believe he almost hit a girl. The guilt was even more overwhelming when he saw that she tried to hide behind her book, proving that she was scared.

"Eh? What are you doing here didn't you see the 'entry prohibited' sign out front?" Kotaro asked, trying to sound genuinely confused and concerned.

"Oh, s-sorry." She mumbled out weakly. Vaguely wondering if the boy knew that she followed Negi and Asuna here; After all she did watch them fight a mysterious boy with her book.

"Ahh, never mind, just don't wander off, there's a fight going on around here so stay here until I get back, I'll let you out then. Ok?" He explained calmly. The girl only nodded, although she did look down at her book occasionally, but that was none of his business.

"Umm my name is Nodoka Miyazaki, what's yours?" The girl timidly asked.

"Kotaro Inugami."

* * *

Naruto looked around carefully, the one moment he turned his back, the girls ran off. Unable to locate the missing girls, he simply stayed behind to keep Ayaka company. After a few topics were thrown around, Naruto remembered that shorter blonde had an outfit especially for today.

"So, weren't you going to wear something 'special' for Negi today?" He suddenly asked, making air quotes as he said 'special'.

"Wha-? Uh no you're mistaken." Ayaka quickly responded.

"No, I specifically remember you asking me to judge you on your outfits so that you could catch Negi's eye." Naruto countered, pressing deeper.

"I-I, must have forgotten it back at home." She lied through her teeth, trying to get off the topic as quickly as possible. For once, Ayaka was glad she went through with dressing up; a Geisha's make-up concealed her blush expertly.

"Ah, just as well, I wouldn't want Imouto-chan to get embarrassed while wearing such a revealing outfit." Naruto agreed with her lie. Almost silently, Ayaka sighed in relief.

Over the past few nights, she'd been getting weirder and weirder dreams. Her most recent one was when she was about to 'ravage' Negi, when suddenly their places were reversed. It was her who was laying face-up on the bed and Negi on top, when something else drastic happened. Negi's face distorted and shifted until it was Naruto's face, sporting a rather hungry grin. Just when he leaned in, that's when Ayaka woke up sweaty and with shaky breaths.

Shaking her head, she looked back up at Naruto, whose face was scrunched up and he was squinting. She could hear him muttering…something.

"Where in hell did they go?" He asked out loud. "I swear that those girls get into mischief all the time." He continued to grumble about the 'damn teenage girls' when Ayaka tugged on his clothes. "Eh? What is it Imouto?"

"I think that they're over there, Nii-san." She pointed at a bridge, where some kind of act was going on.

Moving closer, the two could only let out exasperated sighs. It seemed that the girls that he just lost were getting attacked by small comical animals, who seemed much more interested in taking their clothes than actually hurting them. Just then, someone burst out from the crowd, a teenaged boy clutching a rather familiar girl.

"Konoka?" Naruto all but shouted when he recognised the girl. Just then he got a glimpse at the boy's face. "Negi!" Almost by habit, he ran after them, leaving Ayaka with the crowd.

When he caught up to the two, they had already entered Cinema Town's castle. Reaching the same door, Naruto found that it was locked. Not wanting to delay much longer, he jumped high and stuck to the wall. Barely a minute passed before he heard a booming female voice coming from the rooftop, something about Setsuna Sakurazaki handing over her 'Ojou-sama' and a demon having two others in its sights.

Naruto poked his head up over the edge, and sure enough, there was the Demon holding a bow that was pulled taught. Looking where the Demon Archer was aiming, Naruto almost leapt up and ploughed his fake sword through it. It was aiming at Negi and Konoka.

* * *

Wow, been a hell of a long time eh? Hope you enjoyed the chapter, although it was rather short and ended in a cliff-hanger.

Before I forget. Yes, _Black Lightning_ was on purpose. Just think of it as a more powerful version of _White Lightning_.

I'll see you guys next time, at the next instalment of Mages, School and Shinobi!


End file.
